Covid19 Mystery

[Amity Island]

Argentinian health officials are scrambling to understand how nearly every crew member of a ship which spent 35 days at sea were found to have contracted coronavirus upon returning to land

Nearly 60 fishermen infected aboard Argentinian trawler at sea for five weeks

All but four onboard trawler contract virus during weeks of isolation

www.independent.co.uk

Anyone any ideas?

 

[mikeyB]

Must have been when they were offloading the cocaine onto a smaller boat. No evidence for this, mind, but it's fun kicking off a conspiracy theory😎

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Not read the whole story, but false negative(s) in the tests?

 

[Bruce Stephens]

Not read the whole story, but false negative(s) in the tests?

That was my guess too. (Or somebody messed up and broke isolation in some way.)

 

[atoll]

Argentinian health officials are scrambling to understand how nearly every crew member of a ship which spent 35 days at sea were found to have contracted coronavirus upon returning to land

Nearly 60 fishermen infected aboard Argentinian trawler at sea for five weeks

All but four onboard trawler contract virus during weeks of isolation

www.independent.co.uk

Anyone any ideas?

these ships are like big frozen meat packaging plants with refrigerated holds where the virus can survive for long times on surfaces,add in that the ship operates 24 hours a day with a 12 hour watch system that would effectively partially isolate the sleeping "off" watch crew from the "on" watch crew

 

[mikeyB]

Good point, @atoll, it is known that similar coronaviruses can survive, though obviously not multiply in freezing temperatures.

 

[trophywench]

Exactly the same as in abattoirs/meat processing & packaging plants.

 

[Amity Island]

these ships are like big frozen meat packaging plants with refrigerated holds where the virus can survive for long times on surfaces,add in that the ship operates 24 hours a day with a 12 hour watch system that would effectively partially isolate the sleeping "off" watch crew from the "on" watch crew

Hi Atoll,
That was my best guess too!