SINGAPORE — A Royal Caribbean cruise ship passenger who tested positive for Covid-19 was an 83-year-old man who reported to the ship’s onboard medical centre with diarrhoea.

He underwent a mandatory Covid-19 polymerase chain reaction test as part of onboard protocols, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) said in an update yesterday. 

Before boarding the cruise, he had undergone testing and the result was negative.

The ship, Quantum of the Seas, returned to Singapore at 8am on Wednesday. The remaining passengers and crew will remain on board, in their rooms, until contact tracing is complete, STB said. 

"They will all undergo mandatory Covid-19 testing before leaving the terminal, as per the regular post-arrival protocols. In the meantime, they are being given regular updates and meals are provided directly to their rooms.”

The cruise set off from Singapore on Monday and was to have returned to shore this morning.

STB and Royal Caribbean had earlier said that the passenger was immediately isolated and all his close contacts had tested negative. All onboard leisure activities also stopped immediately and passengers were asked to stay in their cabins.

A circular by the Ministry of Health (MOH) to the cruise ship's passengers, a copy of which was seen by TODAY, said that those identified as contacts of the patient would be placed on quarantine or health surveillance. 

As a precaution, all other individuals are advised to monitor their health for two weeks from disembarkation and to undergo a swab test at the end of that period. The cost of the tests at a government swab site will be borne by MOH.

"During this period, you may continue with your usual activities, including going to work or school,” MOH said in the circular.

It added that passengers should isolate themselves and inform the authorities only if they develop symptoms such as a cough, fever or shortness of breath.Since last Thursday, Royal Caribbean has been operating cruises to nowhere from Singapore — the second cruise company to do so after Genting Cruise Lines. 

It was one of two firms given the go-ahead to offer such round trips with no port of call, as part of a pilot scheme announced in October. Royal Caribbean offers Singapore residents three- and four-night "Ocean Getaways” cruises on Quantum of the Seas. 

Incident 'not unexpected'

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of his visit to the Siemens Advance Manufacturing Transformation Centre yesterday, Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing said that the incident was "not unexpected.”

Various government agencies are taking steps to ensure that the patient is safe and those he came into contact with are monitored. Chan said: "We have always made the assumption that some day, something may happen.

"And that is why it is important for us to have a protocol to make sure that if something like that happened, we are able to contact-trace quickly, isolate the cases... and for the rest of the activities to continue.” — TODAY