Management of COVID-19 on board the mixed cargo ship Aranui 5

Chatard, Jean-Claude; Le Gac, Jean-Marc; Gonzalo, Sylvie; Vaysse, Philippe; Coulange, Mathieu

BACKGROUND: During cruises, the management of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infections poses serious organizational problems such as those encountered in 2020 by the Zaandam, the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle or the Diamond Princess. In French Polynesia, the mixed cargo ship Aranui 5 transports both tourists and freight to the Marquesas Islands. The purpose of this article is to show how COVID-19 infections were diagnosed and contained before and after passengers boarded a cruise. MATERIALS AND METHODS: On October 15, 2020, 161 passengers including 80 crew members embarked for a 13-day voyage from Papeete to the Marquesas Islands. Prior to boarding, all passengers underwent a reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test; the tests results were all negative. On Day 0, 3, 5, 8 and 11, Biosynex® rapid antigen diagnostic tests were carried out on all or some of the crew members and tourists who may have had contact with new positive cases. Each day, forehead or temporal temperatures were measured using an infrared thermometer and questions were asked concerning the subjects' health status. When a subject was positive, the person and their contacts were isolated in individual cabins. The infected person then left the vessel to be received in a communal reception centre on the nearest island. RESULTS: A total of 9 positive cases were observed, including two before departure (a tourist and a crew member). During the trip, 7 crew members tested positive. The patients and their contacts were isolated and then disembarked at the earliest opportunity. At the time of sampling, the subjects were asymptomatic. The patients and their contacts all became symptomatic within 24 to 48 hours after sampling. CONCLUSIONS: In total, the voyage could be completed without any transmission on board among the tourists and with a minimum transmission among the crew members, thus maintaining the tourist and economic activity of the islands during the times of COVID-19 pandemic.