A woman dies of COVID-19 after testing positive on a Carnival cruise in Galveston, Texas

GALVESTON, Texas – At least one person who sailed on a carnival cruise outside Galveston, Texas in late July and early August, died due to COVID-19, the cruise line confirmed Tuesday.

The cruise line backs up against what they call “misinformation,” saying it’s almost certain the woman who died didn’t hire COVID on the ship.

The Houston Chronical reported that 77-year-old Carnival Vista passenger Marilyn Tackett of Oklahoma was put on a ventilator in Belize after experiencing respiratory complications.

Tackett was evacuated to a hospital days later in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where she received treatment. Ultimately, his condition worsened and he died on August 14, his family told his GoFundMe page.

Earlier this month it was reported that 26 crew members and a passenger on board the ship tested positive for COVID-19 before arriving in Belize City.

ORIGINAL STORY: 26 crew members and 1 passenger of the ship Carnival de Galveston tested positive for COVID

All 27 were vaccinated, had mild symptoms or no isolation, according to a Carnival statement at the time. The tourism board said 99.98% of the ship’s crew was vaccinated, as well as 96.5% of its passengers.

In a statement to ABC News, Carnival argued that Tackett “almost certainly did not hire COVID on our ship” and stressed that the crew is committed to protecting the health and safety of guests.

The cruise line said it has since implemented additional safety and health measures. Vaccinated travelers will now have to present a vaccination test and a negative COVID test on arrival. Unvaccinated guests should be tested twice before boarding the ship and, again, at disembarkation.

The following is the full statement of the Carnival:

“Carnival has implemented a set of protocols designed to be flexible as needed to adapt to the changing public health situation related to COVID-19. We meet the standards for a vaccinated cruise defined by the CDC, with at least 95 percent of our guests and all of our crew are vaccinated and then have implemented additional measures, as we now require vaccinated guests to present both vaccination tests and a negative COVID test on arrival.These few guests who cannot be vaccinated they are made twice before boarding the ship and disembarking, and all guests must wear masks in the interior areas of the ship where people gather, such as dining rooms, theaters, and casinos. land or sea is free of COVID, but we are committed to protecting the health and safety of our guests, crews and communities we visit and we have not hesitated to act quickly and go further beyond the existing public health guidelines.

Specifically to your question about the death of a Carnival Vista guest:

We are sorry to hear of the death of a guest who sailed to Carnival Vista. Unfortunately, there is a fair amount of misinformation about the circumstances of this matter. The guest almost certainly did not hire COVID on our ship and received help with specialized medical care on board and was eventually evacuated from Belize after providing a resource to her family. We have continued to support his family and we will not add to his sadness by commenting further. ”