Cruise ship with 800 Covid cases lets guests off at Sydney

A CRUISE ship carrying hundreds of passengers infected with Covid has been allowed to dock in Sydney despite fears of a fourth wave.

The Majestic Princess cruise ship arrived at Sydney Harbour, Australia, after a 12-day tour of New Zealand carrying more than 3,000 passengers and 1,000 crew. At least 800 of those tested positive for the virus, the firm said.

The patients were advised to isolate at home for five days, Australia’s Nine News network reported.

The incident has been compared with a 2020 outbreak on the Ruby Princess cruiser which led to 914 infections and 28 deaths, an inquiry had found.

Clare O’neil, the Australian home affairs minister, said authorities have created “regular protocols” since the Ruby Princess episode and that New South Wales Health would lean on deciding how to get passengers off the ship “on a case-by-case basis”. Federal border force officers will play a supplementary role to the state authorities, she told reporters in Melbourne.

Cruise operator Carnival Australia said Covid-positive guests who chose to isolate on the ship were being cared for by medical staff, according to New South Wales Health. Marguerite Fitzgerald, the company’s president, told ABC television that once Carnival saw an elevated number of Covid cases, it put extra protocols in place.