Criminal investigation launched into Ruby Princess COVID-19 debacle
A criminal investigation into the Ruby Princess cruise ship fiasco has been launched as four of the five latest Australian coronavirus deaths were linked to the ship, which is languishing off the coast of NSW with at least 200 crew who are sick.
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The Ruby Princess cruise ship is the source of the nation’s worst COVID-19 outbreak, a political battleground and now the subject of a massive criminal investigation in NSW.
It comes after four out of five of the nation’s latest coronavirus deaths have been revealed as former passengers on the ship.
Australia’s coronavirus death toll last night rose to 35 with 5635 cases confirmed.
NSW accounts for 16 deaths and 2580 cases.
A 91-year-old in Port Macquarie Hospital, an 80-year-old and a 76-year-old at Westmead Hospital, and a 61-year-old at Hornsby Hospital have became the latest to die from the infection.
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All but the youngest victim were passengers on the Ruby Princess. Hundreds of other cases across Australia are linked to the vessel.
Another former passenger — a 78-year-old with underlying medical conditions — died at The Prince Charles Hospital in Queensland last night.
Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said inquiries into how the ship was allowed to dock would now be the subject of a criminal investigation undertaken by the homicide squad.
Mr Fuller said the question for investigators was whether the Ruby Princess’s operator Carnival had been “transparent in contextualising the true patient-crew health conditions relevant to COVID-19” when it docked on March 19.
The NSW Port Authority initially denied the ship permission to dock on March 18 following a call from a senior ambulance officer that some passengers on board were displaying COVID-19 symptoms
But frantic communications between Carnival and NSW authorities ultimately resulted in the 2700 passengers disembark in Sydney Harbour the next morning.
“On each occasion they were informed COVID-19 wasn't an issue on the ship,” Mr Fuller said. “There is clear evidence corona-19 has been brought off that ship.”
At least 11 of the 35 Australians who have died are linked to the ship.
The investigation will cover the actions of the port authority, ambulance, police, the NSW Health department and Carnival Australia.
Police will also collect records from the ship's captain and doctor as well as information from the 2700 passengers who are now considered “witnesses”.
NSW Health has come under heavy criticism for allowing passengers off before they had tested swabs the cruise operator passed to them.
Health Minister Brad Hazzard said he was “not at all” concerned for himself or his department in relation to the criminal investigation into the handling of the ship.
Almost 200 crew members on the Ruby Princess — which is sitting off the NSW coast — are showing symptoms of respiratory illness. Of the 1040 crew who remain on board 16 have confirmed infections.
Mr Fuller said the ship would effectively act as a hospital ship treating as many of its sick crew as it could.
Once resources become too stretched NSW Police will “take people off and treat them properly” on shore.
“I hope (the public) do trust their police force but there will be coronial oversight on this,” Mr Fuller said.
Chief Medical Officer Professor Brendan Murphy said the Ruby Princess provided good evidence of just how much a virus could spread on a cruise ship.
“Clearly it was a very regretful situation but fortunately those cases have been identified and we don’t believe too many have passed on the cases to other people” he said.
ATTORNEY-GENERAL BACKS ABF
Australian Border Force’s account of how NSW Health gave the final green light to allow the Ruby Princess cruise ship to disembark in Sydney is “utterly persuasive” according to the Attorney-General.
Christian Porter said while he had not gone through a “PhD analysis” of whether the NSW Government, ABF or the Carnival cruise company was most at fault for allowing the coronavirus-riddled passengers to disembark, he believed Border Force Commissioner Michael Outram.
“I found Mike Outram’s explanation of the timing of events and the bearing of responsibility to be utterly persuasive,” he said.
“So anyone who wants an answer as to responsibility for what occurred I think would do no better than listen to Mike Outram’s account.”
Mr Porter said he thought the NSW Police investigation into the matter “makes sense”.
Last month Mr Outram provided a public run down of the days leading up to the Ruby Princess disembarking, and while he refused to “apportion blame” emphasised the ABF only had oversight of immigration and customs, not health.
Mr Outram said after hearing criticisms of ABF officers, he believed it was important to “clarify some actual facts” about how passengers were allowed off the ship.
“I’ve got no information in front of me, factual information at all that says my officers did not equip their responsibilities under the customs … (or) immigration acts,” he said.
“We in the Border Force do not have expertise in health or in biosecurity.”
Mr Outram said on March 17 NSW Health requested information from the Ruby Princess’ senior doctor including all passengers and crew with fever or acute respiratory symptoms, travel histories and if tests were conducted and results.
“They requested that any passengers or crew with flu like illnesses were isolated and provided with hand rubs and masks,” he said.
“On March 18, at 9:39am the senior doctor on the Ruby Princess notified the Health Department with the following, they had collected viral swabs for a few cases of febrile influenza, negative test, and that those people had been isolated.”
Mr Outram said on March 18 the Ruby Princess was told a NSW Health panel had assessed the ship as “not requiring on-board health assessment in Sydney”.
“NSW Health stated to the Ruby Princess, ‘you are free to disembark tomorrow’,” he said.
“However, in accordance with the Australian government guidance, all passengers must go into self isolation for 14 days.”
Mr Outram said despite the NSW Health ruling that the Ruby Princess was “low risk” his six officers wore masks and gloves when conducting their customs and immigration checks.
“There were number of passengers in their cabins,” he said.
“The Department of Agriculture officials advised my officers that NSW Health had conducted a risk assessment, had rated the risk as low and that health officials would not be attending the vessel.
“As a result of that information, all of the passengers were given a green light to disembark.”
Mr Outram refused to specifically blame NSW Health for the failure, but said ABF did not have responsibility for conducting or facilitating health checks.
“People can then make their own minds up about what happened in respect of the Ruby Princess,” he said.