Some 49 citizens of Ukraine are on board the Grand Princess cruise ship, the Consulate General of Ukraine in San Francisco is currently finding out information about the possible presence of infected Ukrainian citizens, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has said.

"According to the U.S. Department of State, 49 citizens of Ukraine are on board the Grand Princess cruise ship. The Consulate General of Ukraine in San Francisco is now finding out about the possible presence of Ukrainian citizens among the infected people," the press service of the Foreign Ministry told Interfax-Ukraine.

According to the report, the Grand Princess liner is currently on a roadstead off the coast of Northern California and there are 3,500 people on board, who are the citizens of 54 countries (1,100 crew members and 2,400 passengers). The competent authorities of California decided to examine the passengers of the ship for the signs of coronavirus pneumonia due to the first fatal case, since the deceased person was resting on this ship in February.

"In this regard, the local authorities decided to temporarily ban the specified vessel from entering the harbor of San Francisco. U.S. Coast Guard helicopters delivered tests for COVID-19 on board the liner to check all passengers who could potentially come into contact with the deceased a man in California, as well as with that category of people who have the first signs of a respiratory infection," the report says.

Depending on the test results, an appropriate decision will be made on quarantining part of the passengers or the entire vessel, the Foreign Ministry said.