Havana, March 17 (RHC)-- Cuba is gearing up to receive the sick with Covid-19 from the British cruise ship MS Braemar, in which more than a thousand people are traveling. The ship is docking this Tuesday in Havana Bay.

The ship had been stranded in the Caribbean since it reported the first cases of the new coronavirus last February. According to Prensa Latina, several ports denied it docking.

MS Braemar passengers were grateful for the Cuban government's decision to receive them for repatriation to the United Kingdom via charter flights.

"The captain reported that we would be flying home from Cuba," said Anthea Guthrie.

"We are very grateful to your country, and we will never forget how hard you must have worked with our government to achieve this. Thank you very much,' Guthrie added.

While Ryan de la Peña thanked the island for its support, after explaining that the captain had informed them that they would be arriving in Cuban port this Tuesday.

The Cuban authorities announced on Monday that together with those of the United Kingdom, the safe return of the passengers of the ship of the company Fred Olsen Cruise Lines was organized.

In a statement, the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the country would allow the British cruise ship to dock in a port on the island, complying with the health measures established by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Public Health.

According to the source, on March 13, U.K. authorities requested Cuba to receive the ship for the repatriation of the travelers.

The statement said that in view of the urgency of the situation and the risk to the lives of the sick people, the Cuban government approved their entry to the island.

"These are times of solidarity, of understanding health as a human right, of strengthening international cooperation to face our common challenges, values that are inherent to the humanist practice of the Revolution and of our people," the Foreign Ministry statement said.

Fred Olsen Cruise Lines reported that in addition to the sick, another 20 passengers and the same number of crew members, including a doctor, are isolated because they are suffering from flu symptoms.

The MS Braemar, carrying 682 passengers and 381 crew members, arrived in the Bahamas on Saturday but was denied docking.

There are five confirmed cases in Cuba with the Covid-19, three Italians and two Cubans. One of the Italians, 61 years old and suffering from bronchial asthma, has been in a critical stable state since Sunday.