If coronavirus patient Alan Steele, from Wolverhampton, is given the all clear and discharged from a Yokohama hospital he cannot return to the Diamond Princess cruise ship, where his wife Wendy is in a 14-day quarantine with 3,700 others
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A British newlywed who caught coronavirus on a honeymoon cruise with his wife could be released within days after a new round of tests.
Alan Steele, from Wolverhampton, was moved to hospital on Friday while his wife Wendy Marshall Steele remained trapped on board the Diamond Princess at a port in Yokohama, Japan.
Mrs Marshall Steele, 51, said on Saturday her husband told her he will be retested in 48 hours and if he tests negative twice he will be released.
Mr Steele, 58, revealed he is in an isolation room and he has become the hospital's "lab rat" while undergoing tests and observation, leaving his doctor "confused" because he has shown no symptoms so far.
Are you on board the ship? Email [email protected].
Wendy and Alan Steele, from Wolverhampton, on their wedding day last month
(Image: Facebook)
The ship has been isolated with 61 people having been taken to hospitals after testing positive for the SARS-like virus.
Mr Steele wrote on Facebook message posted at about 8am local time on Saturday: "I am in a isolation room and have become their lab rat as doctor confused as I have no symptoms and tests all say I am healthy apart from having virus."
His wife, who has not tested positive for the virus, wrote later: "Just spoken to Alan. He will be retested in 48hrs. If he passes the test twice then he can go. Question is where?
"He can't come back on ship, so who knows when we will get to see each other or which country."
Mr Steele, 58, caught coronavirus while he was on a honeymoon cruise with his wife
(Image: Facebook)
Mrs Marshall Steele during a lighter moment with her husband while they were confined to their cabin together
(Image: Facebook)
Mrs Marshall Steele, a nurse, and the rest of the 3,700 passengers and crew are in a 14-day quarantine and will not be allowed to disembark until February 19 at the earliest.
In an earlier post, she wrote: "It was a hard first night without Alan. But hey. We are constantly in touch. Japanese doctors are excellent and he is in safe hands. Thank you all again."
Mrs Marshall Steele said she was also well but had "cabin fever" as she continued to be confined to her room on the ship, where she will turn 52 on Tuesday.
The newlyweds were due to fly back to Britain this week so Mr Steele could start a new job as a driver on Monday.
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About 3,700 passengers and crew are trapped on board the Diamond Princess
(Image: REUTERS)
They had spent days confined to their cabin before Mr Steele tested positive for the flu-like virus, which has killed more than 700 people in China, where the outbreak began in the city of Wuhan in December.
The ship was put in quarantine on Monday after an 80-year-old Hong Kong man, who disembarked the ship last month, was diagnosed,
A total of 78 British passport holders – including crew – were among those who boarded the ship.
The ship's operator, Princess Cruises, said the vessel's quarantine was due to end on February 19, barring "unforeseen developments", and confirmed all affected guests were being taken to hospitals.
Meanwhile, some 150 Britons being flown back from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan on Sunday will be quarantined at a facility in Milton Keynes.
South Central Ambulance Service said Kents Hill Park, a conference centre and hotel, would be used to house the returning citizens after they landed at RAF Brize Norton.
The group will remain at the site in isolation for 14 days, it added.
Everyone boarding the plane in the Chinese city, which is the epicentre of the outbreak, will be assessed and will continue to be monitored after landing in the UK on Sunday morning.
The Diamond Princess is seen anchored off Yokohama port earlier this week
(Image: REUTERS)
On Tuesday, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said that the flight would be the final service chartered by the Foreign Office to bring UK nationals back from the Chinese city.
The ambulance service said the presence of the group in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, does not present a risk to local people.
The first group of Britons who returned on a flight last month are continuing their period of quarantine at Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral.
"The local site has been chosen because it offers appropriate accommodation and other facilities for those coming back from Wuhan while they stay in Milton Keynes," the ambulance service said.
The death toll in the coronavirus outbreak in mainland China rose to 722 on Saturday, while new cases jumped to 34,546.
Sourse: www.mirror.co.uk
