USVI to Loosen Restrictions on Cruise Ship Infection Rates
The V.I. government is preparing to loosen its COVID-19 infection restrictions for cruise ships arriving in the territory.
2022-02-14 12:32:17 - VI News Staff
Currently, a ship may not call if it reports an onboard infection rate of 1 percent of its passengers and crew. That threshold will soon change to 3 percent, according to a meeting of the West Indian Company Ltd. board of directors on Friday.
“The Department of Health, Office of the Governor, V.I. Port Authority, and WICO are now finalizing an updated [Memorandum of Understanding] to present to the cruise lines outlining local requirements,” WICO President and CEO Anthony Ottley told the board.
“In this updated MOU, cruise ships will be allowed to dock and disembark passengers if there is a maximum of a 3 percent infection rate amongst the passengers and crew members. The cruise lines were requesting a 4 percent infection rate ceiling of the entire ship, and certain destinations are granting those requests,” said Ottley.
The policy change, which comes as case numbers have dropped after a worldwide surge attributed to the Omicron variant of the virus, should help to reduce the number of canceled ship calls, said Ottley.
It also coincides with the expiration on Jan. 15 of the Centers for Disease Control’s modified Conditional Sailing Order, first issued in October 2020. The CDC has now transitioned to a voluntary program, in coordination with cruise ship operators and other stakeholders, according to its website. Those ships that choose to opt into the program will be required to follow all recommendations and guidance as a condition of their participation, not pick and choose, it said.
“We continue to get itinerary changes as the cruise lines assess their ability to dock at their scheduled itinerary stops. Please keep in mind that this continues to be a very fluid situation, and we anticipate that there will be ongoing schedule changes ahead,” said Ottley.
Those ships that do dock are hardly at full capacity. One recently called at just 28 percent full, said Ottley, while on the opposite end of the spectrum, the Carnival Magic had the highest capacity since cruising resumed in the summer of 2021, at 68 percent.
The decline in passenger numbers has impacted WICO’s bottom line, said Ottley, who reported at the start of the meeting that WICO generated $4,895,332 for fiscal year 2021 through the end of December and showed a net loss of $3,077,000 for the period ending Aug. 31.
Of the $4.9 million generated, $632,000 was from passenger fees, he said.