Denied permission by five countries US cruise ship to dock in Cambodia

The US cruise ship MS Westerdam, which was turned away by five countries, will finally dock in Cambodia on Thursday (13).

The ship, which has 1,455 passengers and 802 crew onboard, will dock at the Cambodian seaport of Sihanoukville.

Fears of the novel coronavirus have prompted nations to deny entry for the ship.

The ship - which says it has no sick passengers - has been turned away from Thailand, Japan, Taiwan, Guam and the Philippines.

For nearly two weeks, the MS Westerdam had been sailing throughout Asia.

Reports said that there will be a brief health inspection on board by the Cambodian authorities which will take place at anchor.

The ship was scheduled to be a two-week cruise, but with that period running out this week, there had been worries about fuel and food supplies.

Many onboard are elderly and there were also concerns they could be running out of medicines.

Passengers onboard the ship have been subjected to regular health checks, according to Holland America, the ship operator and a unit of Miami-based Carnival Corp.

There have been no reported cases of the coronavirus on board.

Late on Wednesday, the Westerdam changed its course away from Bangkok and began heading towards Cambodia.