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Hong Kong cruise passengers head to quarantine after third flight from Japan

Passengers leave cruise ship Diamond Princess at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama

HONG KONG (Reuters) - A third plane with five Hong Kong residents who were quarantined on the Diamond Princess cruise in Japan for more than two weeks landed early on Sunday in the Asian financial hub.

The passengers were among over 200 who have been brought back since Thursday. They have all been transferred to quarantine facilities in the New Territories, where they will spend the next 14 days, authorities said.

The British-flagged Diamond Princess, operated by Carnival Corp, arrived in Yokohama, near Tokyo, on Feb. 3 with some 3,700 people onboard after the virus was diagnosed in a man who disembarked last month in Hong Kong.

Authorities said 70 of the 364 Hong Kong residents on the ship were infected with the coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2. They will remain in Japan along with other citizens who were in close contact with them.

(Reporting by Hong Kong newsroom; Editing by Sandra Maler)