Windsor couple disembarks cruise ship that endured coronavirus scare

Just days after Canada's top doctor recommendedcitizens skip cruise vacations due to coronavirus outbreaks, a Windsor couple is returning from one after fears passengers on their ship might have been infected.

Mary Ellen Bernard Grondin and her husband were on a 10-day cruise to the Panama Canal, along with 3,600 other passengers aboard the Caribbean Princess, when the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention slapped a "no sail order" on the ship.

"We don't have a lot of information about that," said Grondin."What we did hear was that two crew came off of another ship ... and they had been isolated for I think between 10 and 14 days."

The passengers were alerted, via a letter from the ship's captain, that two crew members weretested for COVID-19.

Those tests came back negative and the ship was able to dock at Fort Lauderdale, Fla.Tuesday morning. That came as good news to everyone on board.

"There was a lot of hooting and hollering and people heading for the bar," said Grondin.

Grondin said people were aware of the health concerns, and that cruise ship employees took many precautions.

"The ship itself was doing a lot of precautions, they had cleaning processes going on constantly," she said. "There was a lot of differences in terms of people did not touch food even at the buffet. There were staff who were who were in gloves and they were basically distributing the food from the buffet."

TVs on the ship constantly displayed coverage of COVID-19, but that didn't impede passengers from enjoying themselves, said Grondin.

"People just are there to have a good time. There's still shows going on all types of activities all the time people going on excursions. So I saw absolutely no evidence that people werereally concerned and that it harmed their holiday in any way shape or form."

Grondin said she and her husbandhave no need to self-isolate as their chances of exposure are minimal. She said they will be compensated for the portions of their trip that they missed, while the cruise liner was not able to sail.

"We feel very blessed and we had a good holiday where we're happy," she said."So we're happy to be going home."