March 29, 2020
COVID-19 Update
Statement from Mayor
regarding Zaandam cruise ship
We have now received information that the Holland America cruise ship Zaandam is being given permission to pass through the Panama Canal and continue its passage to Fort Lauderdale as scheduled. No assurances have been given that they will be escorted from the ship to either a treatment facility of placed in quarantine. This is completely unacceptable!

We cannot add further risk to our community amid our own health crisis here with thousands of people already testing positive for the deadly and contagious COVID-19 virus in the tri-county area.

The U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security must create a plan to protect our community. 

There are many Navy bases on the Eastern seaboard where this ship could dock and be dealt with in a much more controlled environment. The problem here is that Port Everglades sits in the very middle of a vast urban area. There are neighborhoods to the north, south and west of the port. 

We can accept the ship coming here only if at a minimum the same protocols as were followed several weeks ago when a cruise ship of sick people docked at the Port of Oakland in California. 

There needs to be stringent separation procedures. Foreign nationals must be triaged and as soon as possible put on planes destined for their own country. Sick Americans must be taken to hospitals that are not already facing the possibility of being overwhelmed by local COVID-19 carriers. And, healthy, non-symptomatic American passengers must be taken to close by military bases or similar destinations for quarantine. 

You and I continue to sacrifice each day as we try to rid our community of the threat of this disease. We cannot afford any further risk.

Yours,


Dean
COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions