Weyburn couple self-isolating after coronavirus scare on cruise

A Weyburn couple is in self-isolation in their home after a month-long cruise that went off the rails over fears of the coronavirus.

In mid-January Marilyn and Tom Schuck left Weyburn and headed to Singapore. They spent a couple of days there, then boarded their Westerdam cruise which was supposed to take them on a month-long trip along the east Asian coast, stopping here and there to visit cities.

According to the couple, the first two weeks went well.

“Then when we reached Hong Kong, that’s when things went south,” said Marilyn.

They spent a couple of days in port at Hong Kong, and Tom said about 800 people got off the ship and another 500 people got on. Then, because of that stop and the fact a case of coronavirus had been found in Hong Kong, the other ports they were supposed to stop at wouldn’t take the ship.

The next port after Hong Kong was supposed to be in Taiwan, and they did stop there.

“After the first day they must have gotten nervous and said no. We had to push off,” said Tom.

Marilyn said it was disappointing they weren’t able to go out, but the passengers weren’t confined to their rooms.

“Life on the ship carried on as usual and, of course, we enjoyed the whole atmosphere of the meals and the entertainment and just being in a place that was like a luxury hotel,” said Marilyn.

Marilyn and Tom said they weren’t worried about it.

“The longer we went, the more comfortable we felt, because it was 14 days after we left Hong Kong and we hadn’t had anybody with the virus yet,” said Tom.

The passengers’ temperatures were tested to make sure they weren’t sick.

Tom joked that they were only worried about the ship running out of wine and ice cream, saying: “If I had to stay on the ship for another two weeks, that wouldn’t have been bad at all.”

Japan, Guam, and Thailand all refused the ship, according to Tom. He said by the time they reached a port that would take them, they had passed the incubation period for the virus.

“We had been sailing in circles for 14 days by the time we hit Cambodia,” Tom said.

The Schucks were in the second group to leave the ship but they had to stay in Cambodia a bit longer because there was a mixup with their plane tickets. Then, while they were waiting for that to be resolved, one person who had been on the ship tested positive for the virus.

“So as a result of that, they wanted all 12 of us checked for the virus. And they checked us all (and) none of us had the virus,” explained Tom.

They were eventually able to get on their way home. The Schucks were taken aside in the Toronto airport and questioned about their trip, but were allowed to continue on.

They’re now in their home in Weyburn, with another eight days to go in their precautionary self-isolation. They’re also being asked to take their temperature every day and they’re getting calls from a public health nurse to make sure they’re OK.

“We’re healthy. It just protects the rest of the city just in case we come down a fever,” said Tom.

The couple is thankful to be home and will be happy when things can get back to normal at the end of the month.