The Grand Princess moored at the Port of Oakland in California on 10 March 2020 when the cruise ship had been affected by Covid-19 during the pandemic (file picture). Photo: AFP
A cruise liner dealing with Covid-19 and gastroenteritis cases has arrived in Adelaide with fewer than 10 people still sick.
In a statement, ship operator Princess Cruises said the Grand Princess arrived in Outer Harbour in Adelaide's northwestern suburbs Monday morning on day two of a four-day round trip from Melbourne.
"On the previous voyage (a 14-days round trip cruise from Melbourne to Queensland) a number of people reported to the Medical Centre with symptoms of respiratory illness and acute gastrointestinal illness.
"While most guests were unaffected by illness on that voyage, we proactively launched a comprehensive disinfection program, developed in coordination with international health authorities to prevent further spread.
"In an abundance of caution, there will be another disinfection program carried out on board the ship in Adelaide today before Grand Princess returns to Melbourne on Wednesday 15 November."
The cruise operator said there is no current "dual outbreak" of illness on the ship.
"While we do not provide numbers of unwell guests, we can say that the number of guests with symptoms are in the single digits," it said. "Some guests have disembarked in Adelaide today after completing their holiday."
SA Health said it had been informed by the ship's doctor that "the outbreaks have been declared over and the few remaining cases are consistent with numbers you would expect on any cruise".
"The ship docked in Melbourne on Saturday to undergo a clean, with all passengers off while this was undertaken," SA Health said.
The Grand Princess has a capacity of 4000, including crew members.
'Vomit smells everywhere'
Passenger Jody, on board with 10 other family members including her eight-year-old daughter, said she had been desperately trying to get her overflowing toilet fixed.
She said staff had told her the issue had been resolved but water was still leaking from the wall behind the toilet.
"We've got towels everywhere... the room has a funky smell with the toilet overflowing," she said.
She said she and her child have not been sick, but were worried about being exposed to the virus.
"There are vomit smells everywhere," she said. "Someone threw up in the elevator and it still smells."
The ABC spoke with Jody Monday morning while the ship was docked in Adelaide and she was waiting to disembark.
Passenger Diana McElligott, who was on the cruise ship for 18 days, said she was not informed about Covid-19 cases on board.
"We weren't told to wear masks, we were told to be vigilant with washing and stuff like that but never heard anything about the Covid," she said.
"They should have told us if there was [cases] on board. Not a lot of staff were wearing masks, only in the dining room."
Ill guests disembarked separately
Premier Peter Malinauskas said "the bulk of the illnesses" happened before the ship arrived at Melbourne on the weekend.
"When that cruise ship got to Melbourne, it was disembarked and given a thorough and deep clean. Essentially people who got back onto that cruise ship were effectively new passengers," he told ABC Radio Adelaide.
"Zero-point-six percent of the people on the cruise ship suffered gastro."
He said people who were ill disembarked the ship separately when they got to Adelaide, while those with symptoms were told to stay on the boat and not go on tours.
Anne, who cancelled her cruise trip due to injuries, told ABC Radio Adelaide her friends have been sick with both Covid-19 and norovirus on board the Grand Princess, and have been quarantined in their cabins for most of their holiday.
"They said it's been quite horrendous, they've been overrun with cases in the medical centre, a lot of people have been on drips," she said.
"They've been sick since November 1, just after they got on, and they're still sick now, so they went from one disease to the next."
She said her friends on board wore masks and sanitised regularly, but still felt ill.
Passenger David Weeder, who had been travelling with his wife for 19 days, said crew on the ship kept the passengers informed about the outbreaks.
"I had a few incidents, I think it was lucky we escaped without anything, it's just something that goes around."
Tour Guides Association president told ABC Radio Adelaide that passengers disembarking in Adelaide were expected to join tours visiting Hahndorf and wineries in the Barossa Valley.
He said he would take precautionary measures like wearing masks and using sanitisers while travelling with visitors from the ship.
"I'm hoping there's some kind of checking process before passengers get actually on a tour," he said.
Grand Princess headed for NZ
NZ Cruise Association chief executive Jacqui Lloyd told RNZ the Grand Princess was due to dock in the South Island this weekend.
The Grand Princess was due at Fiordland on Saturday and Dunedin on Sunday.
- ABC / RNZ
