Taichung-At least four crew members have been found to be positive for COVID-19 in an outbreak on board an offshore support vessel that recently entered central Taiwan’s Taichung City harbor, according to the city’s health bureau Saturday.

The four positive sailors – two Indonesians and two Filipinos aged between 20-40 – were part of a crew of 16 people on board the 70.5-meter-long MMA Crystal, which entered the Port of Taichung on Thursday, the city’s Health Bureau said.

The positive sailors were identified after all crew members on board the vessel underwent PCR testing that day, the health bureau said, adding that the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) has classified them as imported cases.

The patients are currently undergoing treatment in quarantine. They had not visited any public places in Taichung City, the health bureau said.

The bureau told CNA that all 16 people on board the MMA Crystal have either had one or two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine before they departed Singapore on Jan. 14, headed for Taiwan.

However, signs of coronavirus-related symptoms started to show in four crew members starting Jan. 22, the health bureau said.

Meanwhile, the CECC has also dispatched personnel to disinfect the surrounding areas where the vessel is docked in the harbor.

Built in 2012 by Jaya Shipbuilding & Engineering, the MMA Crystal later underwent a subsea conversion program to support the Taiwanese offshore wind market.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel