Coronavirus Outbreak: British couple on cruise ship 'test positive'



A British couple who have been on a quarantined cruise ship in Japan have tested positive for coronavirus, their son has told the BBC.


Sally and David Abel, from Northamptonshire, are among 74 British nationals on the Diamond Princess, which was quarantined on 3 February.

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The UK Foreign Office said it was "working to organise a flight back to the UK" for British nationals.

An evacuation is expected to take place within the next two to three days.

Mr and Mrs Abel's son Steve told BBC Breakfast that his father had emailed him on Tuesday morning to tell him they had both tested positive and were being taken to hospital.


He said he then spoke to his mother, who was doing "OK" and "at least they were going together" and would not be separated.

However, he said subsequent posts from his father on Facebook suggested they were being taken to a hostel instead, adding "no-one knows what's going on".

He said the conditions on the ship, which is at the Japanese port of Yokohoma, had made it difficult for his father to manage his diabetes and he would prefer his parents to be quarantined in the UK "where the food is more suitable for my dad".


"I'm not actually that worried about the virus - looking at the recovery stats. It is more about the stress, the diet."

He added that the UK government's treatment of his parents had been "appalling", saying they "they haven't got back to us on anything and we have been calling them every day for four or five days".

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Another British passenger on board the ship, Elaine Spencer, said she had been "very disappointed" with the UK government's initial response and they should have organised a rescue flight sooner.


She told Radio 4's Today programme that British passengers who wanted to get on the rescue flight had to sign an agreement that they would go into quarantine for 14 days on their return to the UK.

She said they had received a note from the Foreign Office which told them that if they didn't get on the flight, it was unlikely they would be allowed out of Japan.

The US has already repatriated more than 300 of its citizens from the ship. BBC

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