Cruise liner Hurtigruten cuts short Antarctic voyage after COVID outbreak

OSLO (Reuters) -Norwegian cruise and travel operator Hurtigruten Group will cut short a voyage in the Antarctica region following an outbreak of the coronavirus, the company said on Thursday.

Ten people on board the MS Roald Amundsen cruise vessel had tested positive for COVID-19, and the ship will return to port in Chile two days ahead of schedule, said a spokesperson for Hurtigruten Expeditions, a subsidiary of Hurtigruten Group.

The ship, carrying some 362 passengers and crew, had set out for an 18-day cruise from Punta Arenas in southern Chile and will now return to the same port.

The MS Roald Amundsen was also hit by a coronavirus outbreak in August 2020, when dozens of passengers and crew tested positive, public health officials in Norway said at the time.

Hurtigruten Expeditions operates a fleet of seven ships offering voyages in over 30 countries, including in the polar regions.

Cruise liners Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line on Wednesday cancelled sailings amid rising fears of Omicron-related coronavirus infections that have dampened the nascent recovery of the pandemic-ravaged industry.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said last week people should avoid travelling on cruise ships regardless of their vaccination status.

(Reporting by Victoria Klesty; editing by Terje Solsvik and Rosalba O'Brien)