"Nobody was wearing a mask. The partying continued all the way to San Diego."
Here are some more highlights of our deep look into how cruise lines handled the escalating pandemic.
A Post review of cruise line statements, government announcements and media reports found that the coronavirus infected passengers and crew on at least 55 ships that sailed in the waters off nearly every continent, about a fifth of the total global fleet. washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/…
At least 65 people who traveled or worked on the ships have since died, according to The Post tally, although the full scope of deaths is unknown.
Cruise ships kept sailing for weeks after the coronavirus was first detected in early February on a vessel off the coast of Japan, despite the efforts by top U.S. health officials to curtail voyages, contributing to the mounting toll, experts said.
This photo was taken on March 21. More than more than 300,000 people worldwide had contracted the deadly coronavirus. The captain of the Celebrity Eclipse gathered passengers on the pool deck, where they stood shoulder-to-shoulder for a salute to health-care workers. 
A Post analysis also found that five ships — the Costa Favolosa, Costa Magica, Costa Luminosa, MS Braemar and MSC Meraviglia — made 18 stops in the Caribbean between Feb. 29 and March 11 while carrying someone who later tested positive for coronavirus.
The Cruise Lines International Association said in a statement that there is “no conclusive evidence as yet” that cruise ships were responsible for bringing the coronavirus to specific destinations. “Cruise lines took immediate and aggressive action in response to this crisis.”
But top U.S. health officials said there is evidence that cruise ships have been a factor in the spread of the coronavirus, both aboard ships and through their travel.
“This is not to point blame,” said Marty Cetron, director of the CDC’s Division of Global Migration and Quarantine, in an interview earlier this month. “But we have to be honest about the science and the evidence.”
David Nystrom, 75, said he spent the last four days of the Eclipse voyage with his wife, Susan, in the medical clinic, wiping her brow and watching the ship’s crew administer her oxygen.
Susan tested positive for the coronavirus within 10 hours after leaving the ship and then spent 22 days on a ventilator.
Earlier this month, after more than 14 days in quarantine, her husband developed a dry cough. His test result: positive.
Check out the full story here, via @PostRoz @hannahbsampson @DDaltonBennett @abtran washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/…
