Princess Cruises said there were 3,533 people currently onboard the Grand Princess, including 2,422 passengers and 1,111 crew (Handout)

San Francisco (AFP) – Passengers and crew on a giant cruise ship being held off the coast of San Francisco were waiting on the results Friday of tests to determine if any of the 3,500 people on board have the new coronavirus.

It came as President Donald Trump signed an emergency $8.3 billion spending bill to fight the outbreak and was set to visit the headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in Atlanta.

The California National Guard flew in test kits to the Grand Princess on Thursday, and the findings were expected to be announced early Friday.

Princess Cruises said in a statement samples had been taken from 45 people, a mix of guests and team members — and all passengers had been confined to their quarters pending the outcome. 

The ship is being prevented from docking while the results are due. 

“We have big news on the ship,” President Donald Trump told reporters at a morning briefing where he signed into law $8.3 billion in emergency funding that was set aside by Congress to fight the disease.

“I just spoke to the governor of California Gavin Newsom, we just had a good conversation. We’re working on the ship together,” he added.

The White House briefly canceled the president’s visit to the CDC, a globally renowned public health institute which is leading the US response to the outbreak, after someone there was suspected of being infected. 

But the trip was later re-added to Trump’s schedule after the person tested negative.

Nationwide, there have been more than 200 confirmed cases and 12 deaths in at least 15 states, according to an AFP tally. 

– ‘No panic’ –

Health officials sounded the alarm after two passengers who had been on board during a previous voyage between San Francisco and Mexico later fell ill and one of them died. 

Several other passengers who had remained on the vessel for its next voyage to Hawaii also developed flu-like symptoms during that trip.

Princess Cruises said there were 3,533 people onboard, including 2,422 passengers and 1,111 crew. In total, they represent 54 nationalities.

Carolyn Wright, a passenger, told AFP there was no panic on board and people seemed to be taking the setback in their stride.

“I can’t get over how the news is sensationalizing our ship,” said the 63-year-old professional photographer from New Mexico who was traveling with a friend. 

“There were two cases on the previous cruise and they act like everybody on board has the plague.”

Ellen Carroll, the head of the San Francisco Department of Emergency Management, said that once test results are back, the CDC and California state officials will determine the most appropriate location for the ship to berth.

Princess Cruises operates the Diamond Princess — the coronavirus-stricken ship held off Japan last month from which more than 700 people tested positive and six died.

Worldwide, more than 3,000 people have died from the fast-spreading virus that has infected more than 100,000 people in some 85 countries.

Disclaimer: Validity of the above story is for 7 Days from original date of publishing. Source: AFP.