Tasmania coronavirus outbreak traced to two Ruby Princess passengers

Infections then spread between staff and patients, as some healthcare workers worked six shifts while symptomatic

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The coronavirus spread through a Tasmanian hospital from two elderly patients who had been passengers on the Ruby Princess cruise ship, hopping from healthcare worker to healthcare worker at end-of-shift handovers and forming clusters among the attendees of planning meetings.

The North West Regional and North West Private hospitals in Burnie were closed and 1,300 staff were sent into a mandatory quarantine, along with their families, on Easter Sunday when earlier efforts to control the spread had failed.