WINNIPEG -- A Winnipeg woman who self-isolated after returning from an eight-day cruise has tested negative for COVID-19.

After Jennifer Maw returned from her cruise, which travelled to St. Maarten, Tortola, San Juan and Grand Turk, she was experiencing symptoms such as runny, puffy, weeping eyes, a runny nose and dry cough. She called Health Links to seek guidance and was told to go to urgent care, where she received COVID-19 testing.

Maw told CTV News Winnipeg she went into self-isolation while waiting for the test results to come in.

Her husband, Coun. Shawn Nason, tweeted that his “wife is clear.” The city councillor was not on the cruise. 

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS ON THE CRUISE

Maw, who went on the Carnival Magic with several family members from Feb. 29 to March 8, said there was enhanced screening when they arrived at the ship due to the spread of COVID-19. The screening consisted of a short survey asking them if they had any fever, cold or flu-like symptoms.

“So you filled it out yourself and they took that in and collected it when we boarded,” she explained. 

The cruise’s final port in Grand Turk was also cancelled. Maw said they were told there were some passengers on the ship who were experiencing flu-like symptoms, and though they didn’t meet the criteria for COVID-19 testing, officials at Grand Turk were erring on the side of caution. She noted they also learned there was of a minimum of two COVID-19 cases in St. Maarten, where they had visited earlier in the trip.

Maw told CTV News Winnipeg that on the final Saturday of the trip there was a “noticeable change” on the cruise, saying that people couldn’t just proceed as usual through the buffet line.

“Everything was staffed and people would hand you your plates and hand you your cutlery and serve you your food, whereas the day previous and the rest of the days on the cruise you would normally just self-serve. So there was that change.”

On Monday, CTV News reported that the Public Health Agency of Canada recommended that Canadians avoid cruise ship travel due to COVID-19.