Widespread Covid outbreak aboard Swiss river ship

Two-thirds of the 92 passengers on a music-themed river cruise have tested positive for Covid-19, according to the Swiss news portal Blick.

The media outlet said the passengers, most of whom were from Switzerland, were aboard the Swiss Crystal, which is owned by Swiss-based river-cruise company Scylla Cruises, for the cruise on the Main and Danube in Germany Oct. 10 to 17, a sailing that included onboard singing and yodeling.

• Related: An early end to Europe river cruising season?

While passengers say mask wearing and other coronavirus prevention protocols such as daily temperature checks were followed, they were able to take off their masks when seated for dinner or in the lounge, where was there was a brass band and yodeling for entertainment.

Cruise organizer Hanspeter Balsiger, 67, told Blitz about 60 of the passengers had tested positive, including himself.
Virologist Andreas Cerny told Blick he was not surprised to hear of the virus’ spread across the ship.

“You are together in a small space for days, meet in a changing composition for dinner and at the bar, where you don’t wear a mask when you consume [food and drink] and you speak loudly with brass music and yodeling in the background,” he was quoted as saying. “Here both droplets and aerosols are formed, and the virus is transmitted. Unfortunately, temperature measurement helps very little.”

Also in October, German newspapers reported that at least 13 people were infected on another river cruise ship, the Vista Serenity, which was sailing the Moselle River in Germany.

In September, two guests and six crew members on CroisiEurope’s Vasco da Gama river ship on the Douro in Portugal tested positive for Covid-19.