A Church of Scientology ship was held in quarantine at port in Saint Lucia after measles was detected on board.
Multiple reports have confirmed that after being supplied by health officials with 100 doses of vaccine, the Church of Scientology vessel Freewinds has left port in Saint Lucia for the Caribbean island of Curaçao.
The Freewinds was confined to port after at least one confirmed case of measles was detected on board the ship by Dr Merlene Frederick-James, St Lucia’s chief medical officer, last week.
According to Saint Lucia authorities, there were around 300 people on board the ship.
Multiple media reports have confirmed Freewinds left St Lucia Thursday night local time to return to its home-port of Curaçao; it was scheduled to arrive at its destination on Saturday morning, Dr. Izzy Gerstenbluth, the national epidemiologist for the island of 160,000 people, told TIME.
In ensuring the general public were not at risk of contracting the infections disease, the Curaçao government said it would “take all necessary precautions to handle the case of measles on board of the Freewinds,” including vaccinations.
“An investigation will also be done to determine who will be allowed to leave the ship without [posing] a threat to the population of Curaçao,” it said in a statement.
The vessel is reportedly moored in an area that is inaccessible to the general public.
According to the Centre for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 700 people have been diagnosed with measles in the United States, this year – a 25-year peak for the country.
The incident comes after multiple flights in Australia suffered measles scares in March.
