Samoa has turned away its first cargo ship since the advent of novel coronavirus and the introduction of restrictions for prevention reasons.
Samoa Observer reports Samoa Ports Authority CEO Sooalo Kuresa Sooalo confirmed the container ship IMUA II was turned back earlier this week.
The current safety practice for ocean going ships, not including cruise ships, is they are met at the 2-mile safety buoy by Samoa Health authorities for testing and clearance for port entry.
No reason was given as to why the vessel was refused entry.
Sooalo did not know how much cargo on the ship was to be offloaded in Apia.
While cargo ships are allowed into port if they pass health screening, all cruise ships have been denied entry until further notice.
The full economic loss from the cancellations will take awhile to assess but Sooalo is on record saying that the Port Authority has already lost approximately $ST200,000 in income from cruise ships.
