Santiago, March 15 (IANS): More than 1,300 people aboard two cruise ships in the Chilean fjords in Patagonia have been placed in quarantine, after a British passenger tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the country's Health Minister Jaime Manalich said.

The 85-year-old Briton showed symptoms of the disease after disembarking from the Silver Explorer, which is now under quarantine off the port of Castro, Xinhua news agency quoted Manalich as saying on Saturday.

The patient was later hospitalized in the city of Coyhaique, and was currently "in good condition".

With around 1,065 people on board, the other affected ship, the Azmara Pursuit, has been quarantined near the port of Chacabuco, after it entered Chilean waters during a 21-day trip from Buenos Aires to Callao in Peru.

Chile is in a stage of the COVID-19 outbreak where cases originate from both local patients and those carrying the virus from abroad. It has so far reported 33 cases.

"This means a more delicate situation from the epidemiological point of view in controlling the disease," Manalich said.