US cruise ship quarantined over measles case 'leaves St Lucia'

Freewinds docked in the port of Aruba in 2014Alamy
The ship is reportedly the Freewinds, shown here docked in Aruba in 2014

A US cruise ship placed in quarantine after a case of measles has reportedly left the Caribbean island of St Lucia.

Online tracking data shows the ship - thought to be the Freewinds, owned and operated by the Church of Scientology - is en route to the island of Curacao.

Dr Merlene Fredericks James said on Thursday there was a confirmed case of measles on board and "thought it prudent that we quarantine the ship".

Reports suggest the ship set sail after authorities delivered 100 vaccines.

The ship-tracking website MarineTraffic.com shows a ship called SMV Freewinds set sail at 23:18 local time (03:18 GMT) and is due to dock at Curacao's capital Willemstad at 06:00 on Saturday.

The Dutch island lies about 65 km (40 miles) north of Venezuela, and the Associated Press reports authorities there are debating how to respond when it arrives.

No-one aboard was allowed to leave the ship at St Lucia. Dr Fredericks James said in a video statement posted on YouTube on Tuesday that the ministry learned of the confirmed measles case from "two reputable sources".

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"One infected person can easily infect others through coughing, sneezing, droplets being on various surfaces, etc," Dr Fredericks James said. "So because of the risk of potential infection - not just from the confirmed measles case, but from other persons who may be on the boat at the time - we thought it prudent to make a decision not to allow anyone to disembark."

She cited a 25-year high in measles infections in the US as a risk factor.

NBC News, citing a St Lucia Coast Guard, reported that the boat was the Freewinds, a 440ft (134m) vessel owned and operated by the Church of Scientology, thought to have some 300 passengers on board.

The Church of Scientology's website lists the vessel's home port as Curacao, and describes the ship as "a religious retreat ministering the most advanced level of spiritual counseling". So far the organisation has not commented on the case.

US outbreak

Earlier this week, US health officials reported that more than 700 people had been infected by measles this year, marking a 25-year high for cases of the infectious disease in the country.

BBC health correspondent Smitha Mundasad explains the US measles outbreak

Cases had been recorded in 22 states and were mostly affecting unvaccinated children, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Monday. Officials said the increase in cases is the largest since 1994, including 78 reported in the past week.

Some parents are said to have chosen to leave their children unvaccinated due to the unscientific claim that vaccines cause illnesses such as autism, or on religious grounds. Most cases occurred in 13 outbreak zones, including in New York City's orthodox Jewish communities.

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