A cruise ship with hundreds of Covid-positive passengers docked in Sydney, Australia, after being hit by a wave of infections.
The Majestic Princess cruise ship was about halfway through a 12-day voyage when an outbreak of cases was noticed, Carnival Australia president Marguerite Fitzgerald told reporters in a media briefing on Saturday.
The ship had 4,600 passengers and crew on board at the time, according to CNN affiliate Nine News.
After mass testing 3,300 passengers, around 800 tested positive for Covid-19, as did a small number of crew, Fitzgerald said.
“All positive cases were mildly symptomatic or asymptomatic, and those guests isolated in their staterooms and then separated from non-impacted guests,” parent company Princess Cruises representative Briana Latter told CNN.
Cruise operators separately escorted those infected off the ship and advised them to complete a five-day isolation period, CNN affiliate Nine News reported.
Those who tested negative were permitted to leave the ship, a New South Wales Health statement read.
“Carnival has advised NSW Health that they are assisting passengers with Covid-19 to make safe onward travel arrangements,” the statement added.
Latter said the outbreak aboard the Majestic Princess was “reflective of an increase in community transmission in Australia.”
Australia has seen an uptick in Covid cases recently, leading to more caution from within the government.
