Lately, cruise ships have been seen as cargo ships for the coronavirus, with many forced into quarantine when they're allowed to dock at all. Even after the COVID-19 pandemic diminishes, the public may still be wary to resume any cruise vacation plans.
However, the CEO of BELFOR Property Restoration, Sheldon Yellen, assures that cruises will be quite safe once travel resumes as he explains the cleaning process of ships in a Q&A with Fox News.
BELFOR Property Restoration was in charge of cleaning the Diamond Princess cruise ship, where 697 passengers tested positive and seven died.
After intensive cleaning efforts, Diamond Princess has been cleared to sail when travel bans are lifted.
In the Q&A, Yellen explained how his team had cleaned Diamond Princess following its quarantine.
"We followed protocols set by industrial hygienists, Japanese authorities and WHO. But this is not something new to us," said Yellen. "For this, it was a Level 3, [meaning] confirmed exposure. So, my team followed all of our safety protocols and approached different areas of the ship based on those."
Yellen's cleaning crew had to dispose of all of the ship's cloth goods, including mattresses, beddings and towels, and remove all kitchen utensils. Rooms were then cleaned thoroughly and then barricaded to prevent recontamination.
When asked if people should be afraid of staying in hotels or traveling cruise ships, Yellen answered, "I'm not a professor, not a doctor, not a scientist. What I can tell you is this: The world has faced challenges and we have risen to those occasions. We will go on planes and cruise ships and be in office buildings again."
While Yellen is unsure of when travel bans and stay-at-home orders will be lifted, he believes that following these orders will flatten the curve and allow the public to return to everyday life.
To complete the interview, Yellen confirmed that he would travel via cruise ships if it meant subsiding the public concerns over cruise ship travel once the suspensions are over.
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