DFA Welcomes Home 440 Filipino Seafarers of Norwegian Cruise Ships

(Photo by DFA-OUMWA) 

PASAY CITY 10 April 2020 – A new dawn breaks as the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) welcomed 440 seafarers of the Norwegian Pearl, Sky, and Sun cruise ships from the USA.

The seafarers safely arrived in Manila where they are expected to undergo mandatory quarantine, as part of COVID-19 health measures, before returning to their respective hometowns.

This morning's flight, in coordination with the Philippine Embassy in Washington DC and CF Sharp (the local manning agency), is the first of five scheduled repatriations today that will bring home more than a thousand overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from the United States and Europe. Counting from February 2020, the DFA today breached the 10,000-person mark in assisted repatriations of OFWs from every corner of the globe.

As the repatriations crossed its 11th straight day, the DFA and partner agencies, including DOH-BOQ, DOLE-OWWA and DOTr stand ready to assist our OFWs through this COVID-19 pandemic. END 

(Photo by DFA-OUMWA)