Passengers aboard M/V Matanuska test positive for COVID-19

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - The Alaska Marine Highway System says recent passengers on board the M/V Matanuska have tested positive for COVID-19.

The passengers boarded the Matanuska in Kake Monday morning, passed through Sitka around 11 a.m. the same day and arrived in Juneau at 11 p.m. The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services believes that these passengers were likely infectious while on the vessel.

A total of five cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed. A spokesperson for AMHS said the passengers were all traveling together and “were close contacts only with each other.”

AMHS says the crew arrived in Bellingham, Washington Friday and will receive testing before its northbound departure.

“This is an ongoing epidemiological investigation, but at this time DHSS has not identified any close contacts among other passengers or crew. AMHS requires all passengers and crew to follow protocols to reduce the transmission of COVID-19,” AMHS said in a release. The protocols are detailed here.

DHSS is recommending that recent travelers on the Matanuska monitor themselves for symptoms.