NSW Health has confirmed another coronavirus death linked to the Ruby Princess cruise ship that docked in Sydney in March.

The latest victim was an 81-year-old woman who was a passenger on the ship. This takes the death toll to 98 people in Australia and is the 22nd death to be linked with the ship. NSW chief health officer Kerry Chant confirmed the woman contracted COVID-19 on board the ship.

The cruise ship has been linked to over 700 COVID-19 cases after dropping off 2,600 passengers on the 19th of March.

NSW Minister of Health Brad Hazzard acknowledged that ships were contributing to the spread of COVID-19 worldwide.

“The truth of the matter is the cruise industry right around the world has massive, massive issues,” he told the ABC.

This death comes after the conclusion of the Ruby Princess inquiry in which NSW Health were questioned over the mishandling of the ship’s docking in Sydney.

A teary NSW Health epidemiologist Kelly-Anne Ressler admitted during the inquiry it was “unsatisfactory” to have tested more passengers for influenza (the flu) than COVID-19 when pressed by Senior Counsellor Bret Walker.

Meanwhile a total of 8,117 people were tested for coronavirus in NSW in the 24 hours to 8pm yesterday.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said she was proud that NSW had one of the highest rates of testing per capita in the world, as NSW has the capacity to conduct around 110,000 tests a fortnight.

“There is no way we can’t lead the world in the way we deal with the pandemic moving forward,” she said.

Photo: Ruby Princess (ship 2008) IMO 9378462; in Split, 2011-10-17 by Ivan T is available HERE and used under a Creative Commons Attribution. The image has not been modified.