The NSW health minister has defended the government's handling of the Ruby Princess coronavirus scandal as the opposition calls for him to resign over the cruise ship saga.
The Berejiklian government is under fire after leaked emails revealed results of onboard swab tests from Ruby Princess passengers who were showing signs of influenza would have been available the same day passengers disembarked the ship.
Health Minister Brad Hazzard on Saturday stood behind his staff who had allowed the Ruby Princess cruise ship to disembark in Sydney on March 19 despite knowing the results would be known within hours.
"The NSW Health expert panel has assessed the Ruby Princess as NOT requiring on board health assessment in Sydney," NSW Health said in the email.
A total of 622 passengers onboard have tested positive for COVID-19 including 342 NSW residents. NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller is investigating the handling of the saga.
Test results which were revealed by the government on March 20 showed that four passengers had contracted the virus while onboard, but by that time 2647 people had left the ship.
NSW Labor on Saturday ramped up its attack over the scandal and called on the health minister to resign.
"This is one of the greatest health disasters in this state's history," Opposition Leader Jodi McKay said in a statement.
"The buck stops with the health minister and we are today calling for the health minister to stand aside."
But a defiant Mr Hazzard said that NSW Health had worked "their hearts out" to keep the state safe and told critics to "take a step back".
"The experts who made the decision were the best in the world," Mr Hazzard said.
"Each of the staff of the chief health officer who made the decision made it to the best of their ability. And those people are experts in their field."
NSW Health said it was aware of 11 people who had contracted COVID-19 through close contact with Ruby Princess passengers.
NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said if they had known that coronavirus was on board the ship, they would have disembarked the passengers differently and moved them to self-isolation.
But she said that would have only prevented 11 cases of the virus.
"The people that have acquired their infection on the cruise ship could not have been avoided and every period of time that people were on that cruise ship, there were actually at risk of more transmission on the cruise ship in a very, vulnerable age group," Dr Chant said.
More than one in 10 of the state's coronavirus cases are connected to the Ruby Princess cruise ship as well as seven of NSW's 12 COVID-19 deaths.
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases increased by 104 on Saturday bringing the state's total to 2493.
More than 40 patients are in intensive care at hospital with 23 requiring ventilators.
Meanwhile, NSW police are enforcing self-isolation regulations, with 12 infringement notices issued across the state on Friday.
Other confirmed coronavirus cases in NSW include a second person at TAFE Ultimo and a nurse who worked at two northern Sydney aged care homes including Alexander Aged Care in Brookvale and Scalabrini in Allambie Heights.
There are several COVID-19 cases in NSW schools including a student at Bankstown Senior College in Sydney's southwest, a student at St Mary's Senior High School in western Sydney and a staff member at Gloucester Primary School on the mid-north coast.
There are also confirmed cases linked to the Rose of Sharon Childcare and Preschool in Blacktown including seven staff, six children and 12 secondary cases - 11 household contacts and one friend. The centre is closed.
Australian Associated Press
