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(CNN) — In yet another blow to the troubled cruise industry, US travelers are being urged to steer clear of Asia’s waters.
Over 600 coronavirus cases were diagnosed on the Diamond Princess.
The Asahi Shimbun/Getty Images
While the State Department noted the nation’s successful evacuation of hundreds of US citizens in the past few weeks, the agency said in its statement that it cannot promise to get its citizens off impacted ships or go above any local authorities’ jurisdiction in coronavirus-infected areas.
The advisory comes days after more than 600 cases of coronavirus were diagnosed on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan. The outbreak on the cruise ship, which has been the site of the largest outbreak of the virus outside of mainland China, resulted in the death of two passengers.
Calling the situation a “dynamic” one, the State Department offered no information on when the Asia cruise ship travel advisory will lift.
The department did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment.
Large-scale cautionary tale
Responding to the State Department’s latest travel advisory, the CLIA defended its position in a statement, pointing to the cruise industry’s screening procedures as “consistent with the advice to cruise passengers from the United States Government, issued on 20 February 2020.”
The world’s largest cruise industry trade association, CLIA noted the cruise industry’s modified operations in and around East Asia but says those very precautions “have enabled cruise operations to continue as usual in other parts of the world, including Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific.”
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