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Fred Olsen Cruise Lines’ MS Braemar cruise ship has received permission to dock in Cuba where its passengers will disembark.

The ship is currently on its way to Cuba. The passengers on board the ship will be flown to the UK on a charter flight. The ship was on a ‘Western Caribbean & Central America’ fly-cruise.

The ship was previously anchored 25-miles south-west of Freeport in the Bahamas on 14 March where it received food, medication and ship supplies overnight.

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Additionally, two doctors and two nurses also boarded the cruise ship to support the on-board medical team.

Currently, 20 guests and 20 crew, including one doctor, are in isolation as they exhibited influenza-like symptoms.

The isolated people include five others who have been confirmed to be infected by Covid-19 at Willemstad, Curaçao, which was the last port of call on 10 March.

A Foreign and Commonwealth spokesperson said: “We are working around the clock to arrange evacuation flights from Cuba to the UK as soon as possible for passengers on the Braemar cruise ship.

“The evacuation is being co-ordinated with Fred Olsen Cruise Lines and we advise that all passengers follow their instructions.

“We continue to update British passengers as the plans progress.”

Last month, the Dominican Republic denied entry to Braemar on its ‘Eastern Caribbean’ fly-cruise as a number of passengers on board were reported to have flu and respiratory infections.

The passengers were repatriated from the ship using two charter flights from Philipsburg, St Maarten. The guests on the ship arrived in the UK on 2 March.

Last week, Fred Olsen Cruise Lines confirmed that two guests on the ‘Eastern Caribbean’ fly-cruise tested positive for Covid-19.

The Covid-19 pandemic has so far killed over 7,100 and infected more than 182,000 people around the world.