Health authorities say a dual outbreak of Covid and gastroenteritis onboard a cruise liner is now over after it docked in Adelaide with only a handful of sick passengers.
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00:00 Sailing in its sunrise, the Grand Princess docks in Adelaide, many of its passengers
00:06 taking the chance to explore the city, some still recovering from being unwell.
00:11 You are very lucky if you escape without anything, you know, but yeah, it's just something that
00:17 goes around.
00:18 Health authorities have confirmed that the ship with 2,500 passengers on board was hit
00:23 with dual COVID and gastro outbreaks that are now under control.
00:27 Some passengers say they weren't told about COVID infections.
00:31 We were not informed, were we?
00:33 No.
00:34 No, we were not informed.
00:35 Those on board the Grand Princess left Melbourne two days ago.
00:39 Many had also been part of a 14-day return trip to Cairns, which included stops in Sydney
00:44 and Brisbane.
00:45 Jodie Brockhus says three of her 11 family members had been ill.
00:49 Oh, it's all throughout the ship, so between deck five to seven, all you can smell is sewage.
00:56 In a statement, Princess Cruises downplayed the health concerns, and while the company
01:00 wouldn't reveal the number of people impacted, it says only a handful now remain unwell.
01:06 The cruise ship outbreak comes as COVID numbers across the country continue to rise, prompting
01:11 a warning from health authorities in the lead up to Christmas.
01:15 We have got a COVID wave happening, and the most important thing for all of us to think
01:20 about are people who are going to be more susceptible to infection.
01:23 The latest COVID figures show an increase in prescriptions for antiviral medications
01:28 across Australia, while the number of patients with COVID in intensive care has also risen.
01:34 Many people had a booster earlier in February, but this is to have a second booster, particularly
01:40 as we're going into this wave.
01:43 More hospitals too are stepping up their precautions with the reintroduction of mask mandates.
01:47 [BLANK_AUDIO]