SEATTLE — Titia Koopman’s husband Arie Beukelman is a chief engineer for Holland America line. Right now he’s stuck on the MS Zaandam following a "No Sail Order" from the CDC.
“They are trying to keep the morale up on board, which is, you know, very, very important, but you know these guys and gals are, as I said they're tired,” his wife, Titia Koopman, said.
The MS Zaandam embarked on a two-week South America cruise on March 7.
“It departed right before the United States said don't cruise, so it had already left,” she said.
Shortly after, the ship made national news when several passengers showed symptoms of coronavirus and some died. Holland America sought approval to get passengers off the ship on March 16, but Chile, where the ship was at the time, closed its borders.
Ultimately, passengers were allowed to get off the ship, but Koopman’s husband is essential to the ships operation and had to stay on it. Now, he and other American crew members working on cruise ships all over the world cannot disembark.
“The replacement crew members also cannot fly in to relieve their colleagues. So, it's a double-edged sword they cannot disembark, but they also can't be relieved so they can't go home,” she said.
It’s currently sailing near the Bahamas and porting in Ft. Lauderdale to refuel and grab essential supplies. Koopman says the crew members all quarantined at sea for two weeks and then cleaned the ship.
“So all the members are safe. They are healthy. The ship is clean. It's sanitized over and over and over,” she said.
The CDC "No Sail Order" prohibits any ship from letting passengers or crew to disembark without approval from the CDC and Coast Guard.
“He was supposed to come home at the beginning of April. And we haven't seen him since before Christmas,” Koopman said.
Koopman says she’s written letters to several local and state leaders to try and get them to reconsider.
“I'm not advocating just on behalf of my husband, I'm advocating on all my friends who I have known until the for all my life, all the people that find themselves in this very frustrating situation,” she said.
Koopman says she’s been able to talk to her husband almost daily, but she and their two daughters are just hoping someone – anyone – can help them.
“The why of it is impossible to understand. And so I cannot expect an 11 year old and a 14 year old to really comprehend why their dad can’t come home,” she said.
Koopman's husband has a permanent resident green card and issued to him which allows him to live and work in the U.S. on a permanent basis.
We reached out to both the CDC and the 7th District of the US Coast Guard to see if any plans were underway to adjust the no-sail order, but have not yet heard back.