Gatineau couple who got coronavirus on cruise ship to come home, daughter says

A western Quebec couple that contracted the novel coronavirus aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship will be coming homeafter testing negative for the virus, their daughter says.

Chantal Menard says she learned early this morning that her mother was being discharged from hospital after a second test confirmed she no longer had the illness. Her father tested negative last Wednesday.

• Gatineau couple on quarantined coronavirus cruise ship

Diane and Bernard Menard, who are in their 70s, were among the more than 700 people who contracted COVID-19 aboard the ship, which has been docked in Yokohama since early February.

The couple from Gatineau, Que., tested positive in mid-February and wastransported to a Japanese military hospital with symptoms including coughing and fever.

Menard says the couple will spend the next day or two in a hotel while the family organizes their trip home.

She says consular services and and the Canadian Red Cross have been helping the family.