Another cruise ship experienced a Covid-19 outbreak and docked in Sydney with over 100 passengers testing Covid positive.
The P&O Pacific Explorer got over with its nine-day trip to Queensland and back to Sydney Harbor on Monday at 5.30 am.
Almost 2,800 crew members and passengers were on the ship with holidaymakers who needed to return a negative Covid-19 test before they were permitted to disembark.
The measure comes despite nearly 40,000 Covid cases recorded daily in the country.
It is the second Covid-19-infected cruise vessel to dock in a week in Sydney after the Coral Princess brought back over 125 infected individuals on Wednesday.
Infected passengers on the latest cruise were isolated in their rooms for the trip.
Holidaymakers residing in Sydney will be permitted to return home to isolate themselves.
Travelers from interstate will be made to put up in a hotel room at P&O’s expense.
NSW Health said passengers would not be supervised as it was not a hotel quarantine.
Sharon Zahabi and her family were among those in isolation. She shared with Nine News that every time people visit the marquees or theatre spaces or eat, they need to have their masks on. The staff is also constantly cleaning and sanitizing.
She said that this outbreak would not discourage her from trips in the future.
P&O will give a refund to passengers forced into isolation while on their trip. Passengers who disembarked last week from the Coral Princess claimed that the staff permitted them to leave without looking at their Covid results.
NSW Health earlier reported that passengers would be permitted to disembark after they show a negative rapid antigen test.
However, two of those getting off the cruise ships – John and Julia – informed SkyNews that theirs were not checked.
Julie added that while the staff wore masks, not all passengers were.
The couple, also cruise veterans, said that this experience would put them off going to the sea again.
Source: https://www.marineinsight.com/shipping-news/p-o-pacific-explorer-cruise-ship-with-100-covid-positive-passengers-docked-in-sydney/
