The Royal Caribbean International Covid-19 case was "not unexpected" and the Singapore government was prepared for it, Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing told reporters Wednesday while on a visit to Siemens Advance Manufacturing Transformation Centre.
Update: The passenger who tested positive for Covid-19 was retested, and both an orginal sample and a fresh sample were negative, health authorities said.
The Quantum of the Seas cut short its four-day itinerary, arriving back in Singapore's shores on Dec. 9 after a positive Covid-19 case was found.
The cruise line said all guests and crew who had close contact with the guest have since been isolated, and that each of these individuals had tested negative for the coronavirus.
Remaining guests on board remained in their rooms until contact tracing procedures were completed and were to go through mandatory Covid-19 testing before leaving the cruise terminal.
The minister pointed out how the cruise case underscores the importance of immediate contact tracing protocols "to make sure that we can assure ourselves and assure the public that something like that can be managed", reported Channel News Asia (CNA).
With the health and safety protocols that have been put in place for the cruising industry, he also assured the public that such incidents can be managed properly.
"Today is an example of how we have detected that case," Chan said, according to the CNA report. "So this is not unexpected. In fact, precisely because we were concerned that such things may happen, we have put in place the necessary protocols."
Furthermore, Singapore's strategy in the resumption of economic activities has always been one of risk management over risk elimination, the minister added.
"Because a risk elimination strategy -- zero risk -- means not to do anything ... and that would not be compatible with our overall strategy. So we must learn how to deal with such things, efficiently and effectively to provide assurance to our people," he was reported to say.
This report was published by Travel Weekly Asia, a sister publication to Travel Weekly, and has been modified to take into account recent updates.