A COUPLE from Bracknell have spent 10 days stuck inside a cabin on a coronavirus-infected cruise ship.

Neil and Denise Rolfe are currently stranded onboard a Zaandam Cruise ship off the coast of Panama.

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The Bracknell husband and wife are among 1,200 passengers stranded at sea, including four people who have died from the virus.

Their daughter Joanna Chapman says there are 130 people displaying flu-like symptoms.

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She said: "They have been stuck at sea since the 14th March and no South American country will let them dock."

Operator Holland America Line said 73 guests and 116 crew members on MS Zaandam have reported influenza-like illness symptoms, while four "older guests" are confirmed to have died, although their cause of death has not been given. The ship has been refused entry to a series of ports as the world responds to the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Permission had initially been denied because of health concerns.

In a statement, Holland America Line said: "We are still finalising the details for where and when our guests will disembark, and are asking for the same compassion and humanity to be extended for our arrival.

"The Zaandam cruise was originally scheduled to end in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on April 7."

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Holland America Line transferred healthy passengers to a sister ship docked nearby, the Rotterdam, which has been providing the Zaandam with medical supplies and personnel.

The company said the two ships will remain together for the rest of the journey, and guests on both ships will remain in their staterooms until disembarkation.