'Serious mistakes' made over cruise ship outbreak

Health authorities in Australia have been heavily criticised in an official inquiry into the Ruby Princess cruise ship coronavirus outbreak.

The inquiry found "serious errors" by New South Wales Health in its handling of suspected cases on board.

All 2,700 passengers were allowed to disembark in Sydney in March without sufficient screening. More than 100 of them felt unwell.

A total of 914 later tested positive. Twenty-two died.

The ship, carrying mostly Australian passengers, had completed an 11-day cruise from Sydney to New Zealand and back when it docked on 19 March.

The passengers - some seen coughing and spluttering - were allowed to leave the ship at Sydney Harbour, catching trains, buses and even overseas flights to get home.

But despite officials' fears, the virus did not spread far beyond those who had been on board.

Excluding a cluster in the island state of Tasmania which spread through a hospital, only 34 people in Australia caught the virus through secondary transmission.

But it was Australia's worst coronavirus episode before the current lockdown in Victoria.