Australians to be evacuated from Diamond Princess cruise ship tomorrow

More than 200 Australians stranded on the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan will soon be brought home.

They have been stranded on the ship for two weeks, after the coronavirus was detected on board.

There have now been 454 confirmed cases of the deadly virus in passengers on the cruise ship.

Yesterday, the Australian government announced it will evacuate passengers from the ship on Wednesday.

They will be flown to Darwin, where they’ll be quarantined for 14 days.

Australian passenger Paul Tangey said leaving is not compulsory, but he thinks most Australians on board will do so.

“We read through all the documentation that the embassy has sent us, and also what Princess Cruises, via the Japanese Health Ministry, have given us,” he told 3AW’s Neil Mitchell.

“The best option will be to come back to Australia with 14 days quarantine when we get there.

“If we remain here we’re not allowed to return to Australia until at least the March 4, and that’s after we’ve been tested negative twice for the virus.”

Mr Tangey said he’s not concerned about travelling on a plane with passengers who potentially have the coronavirus.

“There will be heavy screening before we get on the plane,” he said.

“There will be only 200 people on it, so you won’t be sitting right next to a person, so to speak.”

American passengers aboard the ship have already been evacuated, and Canadians are set to be rescued today.

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Government to evacuate Australians stuck on Diamond Princess cruise ship

Image: Kyodo News / Getty Images