What is Celebrity Millennium? Two aboard fully vaccinated cruise test positive for Covid
It has been just a few weeks after cruises were permitted to restart by the CDC since the US cruise industry was shut down last year. The 'Celebrity Millennium' was the first ship to set sail from North America since 2020 with paying passengers on June 7. Now, according to the reports, two passengers sharing the same stateroom onboard the cruise have tested positive for COVID-19.
All crew and adult passengers on board the 'Celebrity Millennium' were required to be fully vaccinated as well as provide a negative COVID-19 test prior to or at the time of boarding. The two passengers who tested positive for COVID-19 found out about the same while undergoing testing before disembarking the ship in St. Maarten. However, all of their close contacts tested negative, according to the reports. The identity of the passengers is not known at the moment. Incidents on cruise ships have always made it to the headlines. In February 2021, Salvatore Anello, 52, was sentenced to three years probation after he pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in October 2020, as he dropped his 18-month-old granddaughter from a cruise ship window. Back in March 2020, a female passenger on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship, the 'Allure of the Seas' was dubbed an "idiot" after she reportedly risked her life to shoot a selfie by climbing over a balcony.
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After more than a year away @CelebrityCruise Millennium is the first ship to sail with guests from North America! https://t.co/WrozoE6rOm
— Royal Caribbean Group (@NewsfromRCgroup) June 7, 2021
The cruise line released a statement to ABC News which said, "The individuals are asymptomatic and currently in isolation and being monitored by our medical team. We are conducting contact tracing, expediting testing for all close contacts and closely monitoring the situation." A spokesperson for the cruise explained that the two positive passengers will remain in St. Maarten until they test negative, and afterwards, the cruise line will make travel arrangements for them to go home.
What is 'Celebrity Millennium'?
'Celebrity Millennium' is a cruise ship operated by Celebrity Cruises, which is a cruise line headquartered in Miami, Florida and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Royal Caribbean Group. Celebrity Cruises was founded in 1988 by the Greece-based Chandris Group and merged with Royal Caribbean Cruise Line in 1997. 'Celebrity Millennium' is the lead ship of her namesake class, whose ships are powered by gas turbines. Some $350 million were spent on making the luxury cruise ship, which was launched on November 7, 1999, she sailed her maiden voyage on July 1, 2000. When delivered, she became the world's first cruise ship to use a turbo-electric COGAS power plant. She is the oldest operating ship in Celebrity Cruises' fleet. The ship features the 'Olympic Restaurant', a speciality restaurant that contains the walnut wood panels that were used on the 'RMS Olympic' and preserved when the ship was sold for scrap in 1935.
'Celebrity Millennium' is the largest COVID-19-vaccinated cruise in the world so far. The capacity of the ship is more than 2000 people, is currently operating at about 30% capacity. Before the cruise restarted, 'Celebrity Millennium's' CEO and President Lisa Lutoff-Perlo told ABC News, "There will be no masks or social distancing required because our occupancy is low. The guests are going to have plenty of space, with plenty of dining options and activities."
The cruise made some adjustments to their operations for their first voyage after being shut down in 2020. They traded their usually crowded muster drill with an online version and removed self-serve buffets. Their infirmary is staffed with two doctors and 11 nurses, and they've also added more ventilators on board and isolation rooms.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently gave Celebrity the green light to sail the first cruise out of the US at the end of the month from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.