Yokohama (Japan) (AFP)

Passengers of the Diamond Princess began to leave on Wednesday in Japan the liner where more than 540 cases of contamination with the new coronavirus were found, which left more than 2,000 dead in China.

Some 500 symptom-free passengers who tested negative and had no contact with people with the virus were to disembark during the day, after 14 days of quarantine in Japan, according to the Japanese ministry. of Health.

"I am relieved (...). I want to rest," said a 77-year-old Japanese man to journalists, saying he was going to public transport. And life on board? "It was comfortable (...) I'm fine," he said simply.

A large number of white Yokohama city buses with yellow polka dots as well as a dozen taxis were waiting to take cruise passengers to their respective destinations, many of which carried their luggage behind them.

This cruise ship, docked at Yokohama in the suburbs of Tokyo, has seen since the beginning of February the number of infected people listed increase and is the most important focus of the virus outside China. The carriers were at least 542 Tuesday, placing Japan under fire for criticism of quarantine management.

In China, where the virus originated, the death toll exceeds 2,000, with more than 74,000 people infected.

- "The unknown" -

The 3,711 people from 56 countries originally aboard the Diamond Princess saw a dream cruise in Asia turn into a nightmare, between the fear of contracting a deadly viral pneumonia and endless boredom confined in a cabin, for some without window with just a short walk on the bridge.

"One last time, all our gratitude to the crew and the captain for their incredible attention (...) during this epic crisis (...). We look forward to seeing you again on board one day," tweeted Yardley Wong , confined with her six-year-old son.

Persons without symptoms and whose test is negative have received an official certificate indicating that they constitute "no risk of infection with the new coronavirus, said person also having no symptoms at the time of the inspection".

British passenger David Abel, a sort of celebrity with his cheerful video messages at the start of his forties, summed up the mood on board.

"The stranger is the hardest and is starting to affect us mentally," he said on Tuesday. He later announced that his wife Sally's test had been positive.

Outside of China's central Hubei province, "this epidemic is affecting a very small proportion of the population," said Dr. Michael Ryan, WHO emergency director, on Monday.

China on Wednesday announced 1,749 new infections, the lowest number of additional cases this month.

Some 900 cases have been reported elsewhere around the world with five deaths in France, Japan, the Philippines, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

- Serial repatriation -

Of the twelve confirmed cases of infection in France, only four people remained hospitalized on Tuesday. A third positive case was however diagnosed among the four French nationals aboard the Diamond Princess. The other three French passengers, one of whom is 80, are hospitalized in Japan.

The dozens of new cases seen on board each day raised questions about the effectiveness of the imposed quarantine during which passengers were allowed to walk in small groups on the deck with masks, while the flight attendants passed from cabin to cabin to distribute meals.

Several countries have decided to send planes to repatriate their nationals without further delay.

The first of those evacuations was that of more than 300 Americans on Sunday by plane. Over 100 Americans still remain on the Diamond Princess.

South Korea chartered an aircraft and repatriated six of its nationals. Canada plans to evacuate negative test Canadians by the end of the week. Of the 256 Canadians on board, 43 have been confirmed to be carriers of the virus. The United Kingdom, Hong Kong and Australia are among the countries and territories which have undertaken to repatriate their nationals.

As for the crew, they will enter quarantine once the last passenger has left.

© 2020 AFP