Key Points
- About 800 passengers were infected with COVID-19 on board the Majestic Princess.
- NSW Health says the COVID risk level for the ship is Tier 3, indicating a high level of transmission.
- At least 580 positive cases disembarked from the ship in Sydney.
Cruise ship operator Carnival Australia says all measures are being taken to reduce the risk of COVID-19 spreading in the community, after hundreds of infected passengers disembarked in Sydney.
The ship docked at Circular Quay at 6am on Friday with 800 positive COVID-19 cases on board before continuing on to Melbourne and ultimately Tasmania.
Passengers who returned a negative rapid antigen test (RAT) 24 hours prior were allowed to disembark.
Positive COVID cases were also allowed to disembark if they had elected not to stay on board the ship for the next cruise to Tasmania. They were kept separated from other non-COVID positive passengers while getting off the ship, and they were assisted to find private transportation.
A Princess Cruises spokesperson said 220 guests from the previous cruise had carried on to Melbourne.
This means at least 580 of the COVID-positive cases disembarked in Sydney on Saturday.
While people with COVID are currently not required to isolate in Australian jurisdictions, it's recommended they stay home while unwell.
The president of Carnival Australia and P&O Cruises, Marguerite Fitzgerald, said the cruise operator had advised all passengers to avoid public transport.
She said the company had complied with NSW Health rules set out under the .
"They have been made aware that they should not use public transport when they disembark," she said.
"We have been proactively preparing for and managing incidents of COVID-19 and continue to work closely with NSW Health, including adhering to the guidelines."
Passengers disembarking from Majestic Princess at Circular Quay told SBS News they were relieved to finally get off the ship after the growing number cases was confirmed.
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'Poor communication upset us'
Ms Fitzgerald said the escalation in virus cases became clear on day six of the 12-day voyage. About 800 of the 3,300 passengers are COVID-positive and have been isolated from other passengers.
One female passenger, who returned a negative RAT, told SBS News she had a positive cruise experience overall, but felt the communication about the COVID cases on board could have been handled better.
"Communication wasn't as good as it should have been. It was noticeable [something was amiss] when all crew members started wearing face masks. But my sister and I wore face masks from day one. But other than that, I really can't complain."
Another female passenger, who also returned a negative RAT, said she and her sister spent the final days confined to their cabins to reduce the risk of getting COVID.
"We didn't even know that we were passing cabins where people had COVID. The poor communication really upset us," she said.
"For the last two days, we just stayed in our cabin and had meals brought to us - only because we didn't want to get COVID."
COVID-positive passengers told to isolate
Guests who tested positive and chose to stay on the ship were required to isolate for at least five days.
Ms Fitzgerald said all cases were asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic and they had been warned to stay away from public transport.
"Much of this has been in planning for months," she said.
"We always knew that there was a risk that at some point we were going to see a surge in community transmission and that we would then see that on ship."
Ms Fitzgerald hit back at comparisons between the current circumstances and the virus outbreak involving the , which was linked to 28 deaths and about 900 infections.
"That is nearly three years ago and since then, we as a community have learned a lot, a lot more about COVID," she said.
"We've learned what works to help mitigate transmission, we've learnt how to keep our vulnerable people safe and it is no different in the cruise industry."
NSW Health says COVID risk level is high
A NSW Health spokesperson said the virus risk level for the vessel had been raised to tier three, meaning a high level of transmission.
The outbreak comes after a jump in cases across Australia over the past week, prompting in health facilities, indoors and on public transport.
Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil said NSW Health has the primary responsibility of dealing with the COVID risk to the community, with Border Force playing a supplementary role.
"I would say that there are regular protocols that have arisen out of the Ruby Princess [saga] and I'm sure New South Wales Health will be out and about later today to talk about the decisions that they have made," she said on Saturday.
Protocols were changed after the COVID outbreak linked to the Ruby Princess cruise ship, which docked in Sydney in March 2020 with infected passengers on board. About 2,650 passengers were allowed to disembark from the ship when it docked in Sydney.
The saga also triggered an and . The Special Commission of Inquiry, commissioned by the NSW government, found NSW Health had mischaracterised the ship as low-risk, and should have tested sick patients immediately.
