2 cruise ships to arrive in Vancouver, 1 with COVID-19 cases onboard
Two more cruise ships are set to arrive in Vancouver, but it's not entirely good news for local businesses as one has been labelled with an "orange status" COVID-19 alert.
Both the Norwegian Bliss and Celebrity Eclipse are expected to arrive in downtown Vancouver Thursday. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have assigned orange status to the Norwegian Bliss.
Orange status means there are enough confirmed COVID-19 cases on the vessel to meet the threshold for an investigation. The threshold requires at least 0.3 per cent of passengers and crew aboard the ship to test positive for the disease, according to the CDC.
The CDC started an investigation and the ship remains under observation.
The ship, however, is classified as "highly vaccinated, meaning that at least 95 per cent of the people on board are fully vaccinated."
The CDC says cruising will always pose some risk of COVID-19 transmission so public health measures, including mask use and testing will continue to play a role in reducing the spread of the disease.
The cruise industry is worth $4 billion and Vancouver businesses play a big role in making sure ships are ready to depart - from supplying flowers to stocking up kitchens.
Tourism officials say the shutdown of cruise ships had a significant impact on local businesses, impacting thousands of local jobs.
More than 300 ships are expected in Vancouver this season, which is an eight per cent jump from pre-COVID travel.
Even with a busy season expected ahead, it won't necessarily be business as usual as cruises won't be at full capacity and vaccines and a pre-boarding test is required.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.