CONROY STERLING begged his mom, Joan Spence, not to break down and cry as he, twin Conrad, and adopted brother Rohan were repatriated to the island aboard the Adventure of the Seas cruise ship on Tuesday afternoon.

After months of quarantine in their cabins after the cruise industry sank amid the global coronavirus pandemic, the three men, along with more than 1,000 other Jamaican cruise ship workers, were reunited in their homeland via the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line ship that docked at the Falmouth Port in Trelawny.

None of the 1,044 crew members will be allowed to disembark the vessel until Thursday after being processed by immigration, customs and health ­officials, but that is fine with Spence, who drove approximately 130 kilometres from Portmore, St Catherine, to witness the heart-­warming homecoming.

And like many other family members awaiting the outcome of the repatriation, Spence said she thought they were never coming home anytime soon.

After health surveillance and COVID-19 tests are completed, crew members will be accommodated at the Bahia Principe and Jewel Paradise Cove hotels in St Ann for at least three days while they await the results, Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton told The Gleaner last night.