A group of passengers and crew have been ordered to stay on a Church of Scientology cruiseship on which a case of measles was discovered.

The 9,800-gt Freewinds (built 1968) was originally quarantined in St Lucia at the start of May.

It was later released to head to its home port of Curacao and arrived there a week ago.

Authorities there said on Saturday that 17 crew and 11 passengers had to stay on board until at least Monday, AP reported. It is not clear if they have now left.

They were said to be still at risk of contracting measles after a female crew member developed the disease.

The church said in a statement that the health authorities in Curacao had acknowledged Freewinds for its strict isolation protocol, which effectively contained the illness to a single case and prevented it from spreading to others.

Measles can lead to pneumonia, brain swelling and even death in some cases.