As of today, Sunday 5 April, there are 5669 confirmed cases in Australia, 2580 of which in New South Wales.
Four more deaths from Covid-19 in NSW, have taken the state’s total to 16 and the Australian total to 34. Three of the four men that died were hospitalised in Sydney and were passengers on the Ruby Princess.
Queensland and Victoria each recorded smaller daily numbers of new cases and the rate of increase in new NSW cases has dropped from 25 per cent to 4 per cent in a fortnight based on the tests conducted.
Meanwhile, five cruise ships restocked and refuelled in Sydney before departing for their home ports.
At the moment, tghe Ruby Princess remains off the coast of Sydney as 250 crew await the result of COVID-19 tests. NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard said he had limited information available about the situation.
During a press conference today at 3pm, NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said that a criminal investigation into the Ruby Princess will be announced.
ALSO READ: Coronavirus cases in Greece reach 1,673 while UN warns that ‘everyone is at risk’
On Friday, at least 10 staff from The Alfred Hospital tested positive for COVID-19, and two other patients with the virus remained in a stable condition.
A spokesperson said the hospital continued to “follow guidelines by the Department of Health and Human Services in relating to testing and self-isolation” sending 100 staff members to self-isolate at home.
The news came after Victoria’s Chief Health Officer called for vigilance around physical-distancing measures after the number of suspected community transmissions of coronavirus in the state nearly quadrupled in a week.
While Australian braces itself for more community spread cases, the CSIRO-operated Australian Animal Health Laboratory (AAHL) is being renamed the Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness.
CSIRO chief executive Larry Marshall said the laboratory was originally created to protect Australia from animal diseases such as foot and mouth, swine fever, and invasive species.
“But the emergence of Hendra virus in Australia demonstrated that diseases do not differentiate between animals and humans, so neither will we, as we step up our preparedness and response to both in a more holistic way,” he said.
“The centre will continue to build on the expertise delivered through AAHL’s extensive biosecure laboratories combined with CSIRO’s expertise across science disciplines to predict, prevent and manage disease, and turn the breakthroughs of Australia’s medical research community into real-world solutions for our greatest challenges, like pandemics.”