BEIJING — China's transport regulator said on March 16 that it will roll out contingency plans targeting public health emergencies on large passenger liners to fuel the healthy development of the country's cruise industry.

Yang Xinzhai, an official with the Ministry of Transport, said that containing the novel coronavirus outbreak on passenger liners has been a focus of their anti-virus efforts, and timely and precise measures were introduced to that end.

Since late January, all international cruise ships originating from ports on the Chinese mainland have been suspended, with 10 international ships from seven cruise companies involved, Yang said.

China has successfully handled two such emergencies on cruise ships in late January, both of which carried passengers with fever, Yang said, adding that anti-virus work on board tended to be more difficult as cruise ships are usually highly populated and relatively closed.

For passenger ships that were still operating, the ministry called for efforts to control passenger load and keep track of passenger information.