No passenger from Germany tested positive

All the 46 passengers who were tested at Helsinki Port on their arrival on 16 August were found coronavirus negative, said the City of Helsinki in a press release on Thursday.

The authorities offered 127 passengers who had arrived at the Vuosaari Harbour from Germany to go for voluntary coronavirus test and 46 of them took up the offer. None of them was found to be infected with the virus.

The opportunity for a voluntary coronavirus test was offered to passengers in connection with normal customs checks, regardless of whether they displayed symptoms or not. The health guidance was provided by the City of Helsinki, while the actual testing was carried out by HUSLAB.

At present, Helsinki’s harbours record approximately 10,000–15,000 passengers arriving per day. The majority of them are passengers on short cruises that departed from Finland or the Baltic countries.

The City of Helsinki also set up a health guidance point at the West Harbour on 17 August, Monday. The operating model is similar to the one used at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport, where all arriving passengers are offered information on COVID-19, its prevention and symptoms. Passengers exhibiting symptoms are instructed to get tested for coronavirus infection. The first few days of the health guidance operations at the West Harbour have gone well. Similar operations will also be started at the Olympic Terminal, the Katajanokka Terminal and the Vuosaari Hansa Terminal in the near future.