Fifteen New Zealanders onboard a cruise ship docked in Florida, United States are returning home.
MS Zaandam Cruise Ship approaches to Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida Photo: AFP
Four people on board the MS Zaandam with Covid-19 have died and dozens are ill with flu-like symptoms.
The cruise ship company The Holland America Line - a subsidiary of Carnival - says it chartered flights for the New Zealanders and other nationalities to get home.
The MS Zaandam and its twin, the Rotterdam, docked in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, this week, where medical personnel immediately began off-loading 13 severely ill passengers and one crew member to take to hospital.
Arrival of the ships capped a nearly three-week ordeal during which Latin American ports along its route refused entry.
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