By Analou De Vera Some 500 Filipinos are aboard a cruise in San Francisco, California, which was found to have some passengers and crewmen with symptoms of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the Department of Health (DOH) said Thursday. Department of Health Secretary Francisco Duque III (CZAR DANCEL / MANILA BULLETIN) But Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said they are still gathering information about the condition of Filipinos onboard M/V Grand Princess, which belongs to the Princess Cruises – the shipping company that operates the coronavirus-stricken M/V Diamond Princes held in Japan. “Hindi pa kumpleto ang information sa atin . I'm waiting for the complete information,” Duque told reporters in an interview Thursday afternoon. The Health chief said the passengers and crew members of the cruise ship are now being tested for possible infection of COVID-19. “They are doing the test right now. So we will have to wait for the results of the tests,” he said. The Princess Cruises ship line, in a statement, said there is a “small cluster of COVID-19 cases in Northern California” that is being connected to its Grand Princess cruise ship, adding that it is now being investigated by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Guests and crewmembers of the cruise ship will undergo testing, including all in-transit guests or those who previously sailed the Mexico voyage and remained on board for the Hawaii leg of the cruise, and “those guests and crew who have experienced influenza-like illness symptoms on this voyage, and guests currently under care for respiratory illness.” Princess Cruises, in its website post, said the US Coast Guard will deliver sampling kits to the ship on March 5 (March 6 in Manila) via helicopter to be administered by the onboard medical team. Samples will then be sent in batches by helicopter to a lab in Richmond, California across the bay from San Francisco. In the meantime, US health officials have advised that no guests of the cruise ship will be allowed to disembark until all results have been received. “Out of an abundance of caution, all guests who have been identified for testing have been asked to remain in their staterooms. We will continue to proceed under the guidance of the US CDC and local authorities,” the Grand Princess said in the statement Meanwhile, Duque expressed hope that the lapses on the quarantine procedure of the Japanese government with regards to the M/V Diamond Princess cruise ship will not be repeated. “Hopefully, they have learned their lesson from what had happened from the M/V Diamond Princess in Yokohama, Japan. We hope that there won't be a repeat of the lapses that Japanese officials themselves admitted,” said Duque. Among the lapses that Duque cited was that crew members of the M/V Diamond Princess were allowed to serve and interact with passengers. There was also lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) among the crew members while they were doing their duties. It was noted that there were 80 Filipinos on board the M/V Diamond Princess that tested positive for COVID-19. Duque said it is better for the passengers and crew of the M/V Grand Princess be taken to a medical facility for monitoring. “If they can be brought to the facility that would be ideal,” he said. (With a report from Roy C. Mabasa)