Several passengers tested positive for Covid-19 onboard the ship Costa Smeralda during a cruise to the Mediterranean. Costa Cruises announced, six members of two families tested positive on the ship, which docked in Marseille, France yesterday.

"We have six positive cases belonging to two families and the same number of contact cases," Costa Cruises said.

The passengers who tested positive and six other direct contacts were isolated from the other passengers until they disembarked in the French port city.

The infected guests were said to belong to a group of 180 vacationers from France who had taken part in a week-long Mediterranean cruise with stops in Spain and Italy. All participants had to present a negative Covid test when they boarded in Marseille a week ago. A second test was made midway through the voyage.

The cases were discovered after a passenger with fever reported to the crew, and all accompanying persons were tested immediately. Because those affected did not want to disembark in Italy, they were placed in isolation on the ship until their return to Marseille and taken home in an ambulance after disembarking. The French regional health authority confirmed the safe disembarkation of the affected passengers.