Sailing Couple Had No Idea About Covid-19 Until Trying to Dock in Caribbean

A COUPLE who were sailing around the world had no idea about the coronavirus pandemic, until they attempted to dock in the Caribbean.

Elena Manighetti and Ryan Osborne, who live in Manchester, had told their families to keep in touch but that they did not want to receive any ‘bad news’ while on their journey.

Elena – originally from Lombardy in northern Italy, one of the worst hit regions – told the BBC: “In February we’d heard there was a virus in China, but with the limited information we had we figured by the time we got to the Caribbean in 25 days it would all be over.”

Ryan added: “When we arrived we realised it wasn’t over and the whole world had been infected.”

The couple quit their jobs in 2017 and decided to travel the world. The deadly virus was rapidly spreading across the world, but with 25 days at sea and little communication with the outside world, Elena and Ryan had no idea.

Thanks to their GPS, the couple were able to prove they had been sailing for 25 days and had therefore been in quarantine.