Diamond Princess coronavirus evacuees leave Howard Springs camp after weeks in quarantine

a man holding a cell phone: Mytran and Kenneth Donnelly are happy to be heading home to their families today. (ABC Darwin: Michael Franchi) © Provided by ABC NEWS Mytran and Kenneth Donnelly are happy to be heading home to their families today. (ABC Darwin: Michael Franchi) Former Diamond Princess passengers Mytran and Kenneth Donnelly are heading home to Sydney today after spending 32 days in isolation.

The couple spent 18 days in lockdown on board the coronavirus-hit Diamond Princess, and another 14 in a mining camp near Darwin.

In total, it's been 45 days since they left New South Wales. And Mrs Donnelly said the hardest part of the quarantine was missing the birth of their first grandson.

"We're home free, finally," she said.

The Diamond Princess captain let the Donnellys access the internet so they could see a video of the newest addition to their family shortly after he was born, and gave them a teddy bear for their grandson.

"We'll just be glad to go home and see the children," Mr Donnelly added.

Pictures: Coronavirus (COVID 19) outbreak

Get the best travel deals and discounts for your holiday

Ad Kayak
Coupon sale: Save 15% off items with this code

Ad eBay.com.au
Catch a bargain with cheap groceries and bulk buys

Ad Catch.com.au
$Slide 65 of 116: MOSCOW REGION, RUSSIA - JANUARY 31, 2020: Employees of the airport's epidemiological surveillance at a medical aid station at Terminal F of Sheremetyevo International Airport. Russia suspends most flights to and from China from February 1, allowing Aeroflot routes to four Chinese cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong. Aeroflot and Chinese airlines flights arriving at Sheremetyevo International Airport are to be allocated to Terminal F. Sergei Savostyanov/TASS (Photo by Sergei Savostyanov\TASS via Getty Images)$
$Slide 69 of 116: NEW YORK CITY, USA - JANUARY 31, 2020: Zhang Jun (L), China's Permanent Representative to the UN, has stated in his press briefing more than 130 patients have been cured of pneumonia caused by the coronavirus. Maria Khrenova/TASS (Photo by Maria Khrenova\TASS via Getty Images)$
$Slide 98 of 116: KRASNOYARSK, RUSSIA - JANUARY 23, 2020: A Rospotrebnadzor (Russian Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Well-Being) official uses a thermal imaging device to conduct a temperature check of passengers arriving at Krasnoyarsk International Airport on a plane from Cam Rahn, Vietnam, in connection with an outbreak of coronavirus. Andrei Samsonov/TASS (Photo by Andrei Samsonov\TASS via Getty Images)$

Full Screen

1/116 SLIDES © Tyrone Siu/Reuters

China has been battling an outbreak of a new SARS-like coronavirus, named 2019-nCoV, which originated in Wuhan. The virus has claimed over 1,000 lives in mainland China – far surpassing the death toll during the SARS outbreak in 2003 – and infected over 43,000 people around the world. The Chinese government has allocated $144 million to combat the virus. The country and several of its cities are under a travel lockdown as other nations try to contain the spread of the virus, with major airlines suspending their service from and to the Asian nation. Outside of China, the Philippines reported the first death on Feb. 2, 2020, and Hong Kong on Feb. 4. The other 25 countries and regions infected by the novel coronavirus are Australia, Belgium, Cambodia, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Macao, Malaysia, Nepal, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, UAE, U.K., U.S. and Vietnam. On Jan. 30, the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a global emergency.

(Pictured) A man in protective gear waits to evacuate residents from a public housing building in Hong Kong on Feb. 11.

2/116 SLIDES © Issei Kato/Reuters

Members of the media stand near the cruise ship Diamond Princess, where dozens of passengers were tested positive for coronavirus, at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama, Japan, on Feb. 11.

3/116 SLIDES © Heo Ran/Reuters

People wear masks as a precautionary measure at the Seoul railway station in South Korea on Feb. 10.

4/116 SLIDES © Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty Images

A resident wearing a protective face mask looks on at Patan Durbar Square in Patan, Nepal, on Feb. 10.

5/116 SLIDES © Lim Huey Teng/Reuters

A Malaysian Royal Guard wears a protective mask as he stands guard outside National Palace in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Feb. 10.

6/116 SLIDES © AFP/Getty Images

A woman walks past a sand sculpture depicting people wearing protective masks with a message reading 'Fight against coronavirus, we stand with China' made by Indian artist Sudarsan Pattnaik at Puri beach in Odisha, India, on Feb. 10.

7/116 SLIDES © Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images

Tourists wearing face masks visit Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul, South Korea, on Feb. 10.

8/116 SLIDES © Tyrone Siu/Reuters

People wear protective masks as they wait to cross the street in Hong Kong on Feb. 10.

9/116 SLIDES © Noel Celis/AFP via Getty Images

A worker wearing a protective suit carries a fogging machine as others prepare to disinfect a business establishment in Shanghai, China, on Feb. 9.

10/116 SLIDES © Leon Neal/Getty Images

A plane carrying 150 Britons, who were trapped in Wuhan following the coronavirus outbreak, lands at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, near London, England, on Feb. 9.

11/116 SLIDES © Enrique Calvo/Reuters

Local health government and medical chief members speak to media at the Son Espases hospital, where a case of coronavirus has been detected, in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, on Feb. 9.

12/116 SLIDES © Hannibal Hanschke/Reuters

A group of 20 Germans evacuated from Wuhan leave Tegel Airport in a convoy, after their arrival in an air force plane in Berlin, Germany, on Feb. 9.

13/116 SLIDES © Adriano Machado/Reuters

Brazilian citizens from Wuhan arrive at the Air Force base of Anapolis, in Brazil on Feb. 9.

14/116 SLIDES © Aly Song/Reuters

A passenger wearing a mask walks outside the Shanghai railway station in China on Feb. 8.

15/116 SLIDES © STR/AFP/Getty Images

Workers produce protective clothing at a factory in Wuxi, China, on Feb. 8. The factory, which previously produced suits and sportswear, switched to production of protective clothing as demand increased due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.

16/116 SLIDES © Kin Cheung/AP Photo

Family members of passengers from the cruise ship World Dream docked at Kai Tak cruise terminal, wave on shore in Hong Kong on Feb. 8. The cruise ship with approximately 1,800 passengers remained quarantined in Hong Kong's Victoria Harbor on Feb. 8. Several passengers from mainland China on a previous World Dream cruise were found to have the new coronavirus on returning home.

17/116 SLIDES © Lim Huey Teng/Reuters

A Hindu devotee wears a mask as she carries a milk pot on her head at a shrine in Batu Caves during the Thaipusam festival in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Feb. 8.

18/116 SLIDES © Christophe Archambault/AFP/Getty Images

French Health and Solidarity Minister Agnès Buzyn leaves after attending a meeting about the situation of the n-CoV 2019 coronavirus, in Paris, France, on Feb. 8. The minister said that five British nationals including a child have tested positive for the new coronavirus in France.

19/116 SLIDES © Firdia Lisnawati/AP Photo

Tourists wearing face masks line up near a departure gate at the airport in Bali, Indonesia, on Feb. 8. Thousands of Chinese tourists are reportedly stranded in Bali following suspension of all flights to and from China.

20/116 SLIDES © Geovien So/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam speaks to the media during a press conference on the coronavirus situation in Hong Kong on Feb. 8. Lam said that the government has bought 48 million masks and received 17 million more from China to counter the shortage of masks in Hong Kong.

21/116 SLIDES © Yonhap/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun has his temperature checked during a visit to a clinic in Gyeonggi, South Korea, on Feb. 8.

22/116 SLIDES © Kin Cheung/AP Photo

People wearing masks walk in a subway station in Hong Kong on Feb. 7.

23/116 SLIDES © Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters

People look on from the quarantined cruise liner Diamond Princess, in Yokohama, south of Tokyo, Japan, on Feb. 7. About 64 passengers from the ship have tested positive for the virus. Another ship, the World Dream, has been docked and quarantined at the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal in Hong Kong. It has 3,600 passengers and crew on board.

24/116 SLIDES © Edward Wang/Reuters

Flight attendants wearing protective clothing and masks serve snacks to Canadians, who had been evacuated from China due to the outbreak of novel Coronavirus on an American charter plane, on another aircraft taking them to Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Trenton from the Vancouver International Airport in Richmond, Canada, on Feb. 7.

25/116 SLIDES © Woohae Cho/Getty Images

A disinfection worker in protective gear sterilizes a restaurant in Tong-in Market in Seoul, South Korea, on Feb. 7.

26/116 SLIDES © Edgar Su/Reuters

People stock up on food supplies at a supermarket in Singapore on Feb. 7, after the country raised coronavirus outbreak alert to orange.

27/116 SLIDES © Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo

Members of U.S. President Donald Trump's Coronavirus task force – (L-R) Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Robert Redfield, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun – attend a news conference about the virus at the Health and Human Services headquarters in Washington, D.C, U.S., on Feb. 7.

28/116 SLIDES © Pilar Olivares/Reuters

Passengers wearing masks arrive at the Tom Jobim International Airport in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Feb. 7.

29/116 SLIDES © Kham/Reuters

People spray chemical to sterilize vehicles against the virus in Thai Nguyen, Vietnam, on Feb. 7.

30/116 SLIDES © Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters

A woman hangs a Japanese flag that reads "shortage of medicine" onboard the cruise ship Diamond Princess, which is anchored at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama, Japan, on Feb. 7.

31/116 SLIDES © Fabian Hamacher/Reuters

Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen speaks about the coronavirus situation during a news conference at the Centers for Disease Control in Taipei, Taiwan, on Feb. 7.

32/116 SLIDES © Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters

Spectators wear masks while attending the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Seoul, South Korea, on Feb. 6.

33/116 SLIDES © Rodrigo Urzagasti/Reuters

Members of an emergency team participate in a drill to prepare for the potential arrival of passengers infected with the coronavirus at the Viru Viru International Airport, in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, on Feb. 6.

34/116 SLIDES © Ivan Abreu/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images

Airport security staff checks passengers using a thermal sensor screen at the Hong Kong International Airport on Feb. 6.

35/116 SLIDES © Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP/Getty Images

A tourist receives a free protective face mask from Buddhist volunteers in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Feb. 6.

36/116 SLIDES © Vincent Thian/AP Photo

Nurses check the temperature of visitors at a hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Feb. 5.

37/116 SLIDES © Scott Bauer/AP Photo

Joe Parisi, Dane County executive, discusses the first confirmed case of coronavirus in a Wisconsin resident as Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway looks on during a news conference in Madison, Wisconsin, on Feb. 5.

38/116 SLIDES © Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters

Passengers watch as ambulances transfer passengers, who tested positive for coronavirus, from the cruise ship Diamond Princess to a hospital, after the ship arrived at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama, on Feb. 6.

39/116 SLIDES © Maxim Slutsky/AP Photo

A group of medical personnel meet evacuees, carried by a Russian military plane at an airport outside Tyumen, Russia, on Feb. 5. Russia evacuated 144 people, Russians and nationals of Belarus, Ukraine and Armenia, from the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan, China, on the day. All evacuees will be quarantined for two weeks in a sanatorium in the Tyumen region in western Siberia, government officials said.

40/116 SLIDES © STR/Jiji Press/AFP/Getty Images

Workers in protective gear are seen on Japan Coast Guard boats in Yokohama, Japan, on Feb. 5, bringing patients from the quarantined Diamond Princess cruise ship.

41/116 SLIDES © Ahn Young-joon/AP Photo

Workers wearing protective gears spray disinfectant on a street at Namdaemun Market in Seoul, South Korea, on Feb. 5.

42/116 SLIDES © Dieu Nalio Chery/AP Photo

A public health ministry nurse measures the temperature of a passenger arriving from France, at the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Feb. 4.

43/116 SLIDES © Ramzi Boudina/Reuters

Employees wearing face masks are seen at a hotel near Algiers, Algeria, on Feb. 4, where people who were evacuated from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the outbreak, are quarantined as a preventive measure.

44/116 SLIDES © Denis Balibouse/Reuters

Sylvie Briand, director of infectious hazard management department at the World Health Organization (WHO), attends a press conference on the coronavirus in Geneva, Switzerland, on Feb. 4.

45/116 SLIDES © STR/AFP/Getty Images

Beds are set up at an exhibition center, which was converted into a hospital, in Wuhan on Feb. 4.

46/116 SLIDES © Muzzafar Kasim/Malaysia's Ministry of Health/AP Photo

This handout photo released by Malaysia's Ministry of Health shows citizens being directed onto a bus by health officials as they arrive at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia in Feb. 4.

47/116 SLIDES © Roslan Rahman/AFP/Getty Images

People wear face masks as they go about their daily lives in Singapore on Feb. 4.

48/116 SLIDES © Tyrone Siu/Reuters

Medical workers hold a strike outside the office of Hospital Authority in Hong Kong, as they demand the closure of borders with China, on Feb. 4.

49/116 SLIDES © Lim Huey Teng/Reuters

A nurse checks the temperature of a visitor as part of the coronavirus screening procedure at a hospital in Kuala Lumpur on Feb. 3.

50/116 SLIDES © Heo Ran/Reuters

Young men wear masks for protection against the new coronavirus as they take part in a conscription examination for the national service in Seoul on Feb. 3.

51/116 SLIDES © Anthony Kwan/Getty Images

Medical workers hold a strike near Queen Mary Hospital in Hong Kong to demand the government to shut the territory's border with mainland China in order to reduce the spread of the coronavirus, on Feb. 3.

52/116 SLIDES © Wakil Kohsar/AFP via Getty Images

Health services staff members wearing protective gear interact with passengers at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Feb. 2.

53/116 SLIDES © AFP via Getty Images

Police walk past signage before the arrival of Myanmar students, who were evacuated on a chartered flight from Wuhan, at the international airport in Mandalay, Myanmar, on Feb. 2.

54/116 SLIDES © Dinuka Liyanawatte/Reuters

Members of the Association for Sri Lanka and China Social and Cultural Cooperation (ASLCSCC) hold candles during a vigil to pray for people who are suffering from coronavirus across the world, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on Feb. 1.

55/116 SLIDES © Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters

A staff member sanitizes the road at an entrance of a residential complex in Beijing on Feb. 1.

56/116 SLIDES © Caroline Seidel/picture alliance via Getty Images

German Minister for Defense Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer (R) and German Minister for Health Jens Spahn give a joint statement in Bonn, Germany, on Feb. 1, on the evacuation of more than 100 German citizens from Wuhan following the coronavirus outbreak.

57/116 SLIDES © Aytug Can Sencar/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca speaks to the press after a Turkish cargo plane carrying 42 passengers from Wuhan landed at Etimesgut Military Airport in Ankara, Turkey, on Feb. 1.

58/116 SLIDES © Damian Dovarganes/AP Photo

Customers wear protective masks as they shop at a store in Alhambra, California, U.S., on Jan. 31.

59/116 SLIDES © Benoit Tessier/Reuters

Arnaud Fontanet, director of global health department at Institut Pasteur, speaks during a news conference over the latest findings on coronavirus in Paris, France, on Jan. 31.

60/116 SLIDES © Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters

People wear face masks while shopping at a supermarket in Beijing, on Jan. 31.

61/116 SLIDES © Heo Ran/Reuters

Masks are seen at a pharmacy in Seoul on Jan. 31.

62/116 SLIDES © Ajay Verma/Reuters

Students pray for the victims of coronavirus at a school in Chandigarh, India, on Jan. 31.

63/116 SLIDES © Kevin Frayer/Getty Images

Police wear protective masks as they stand guard in Beijing, on Jan. 31.

64/116 SLIDES © Luke Dray/Getty Images

Medical staff of the Ethiopian Ministry of Health prepares to screen passengers at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport of Ethiopia, on Jan. 31.

65/116 SLIDES © Sergei Savostyanov/TASS/Getty Images

Employees of the airport's epidemiological surveillance at a medical aid station at Terminal F of Sheremetyevo International Airport in Khimki, Russia, on Jan. 31.

66/116 SLIDES © Ali Murat Alhas/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

Officials make preparations in Turkish Air Forces' A400M cargo plane at Etimesgut Military Airbase in Ankara, which is to depart to China to fly Turkish citizens out of Wuhan, on Jan. 31.

67/116 SLIDES © Christopher Black/WHO/Handout/Reuters

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director general of the World Health Organization, and Didier Houssin, chair of the emergency committee, at the opening of the second meeting of the International Health Regulations (IHR) Emergency Committee for Pneumonia due to the Novel Coronavirus 2019-nCoV in Geneva on Jan. 30.

68/116 SLIDES © Edgard Garrido/Reuters

A technician shows the sample analysis work in preparation for the study of possible cases of coronavirus at the Public Health Institute of Chile (ISP) in Santiago, Chile, on Jan. 30.

69/116 SLIDES © Maria Khrenova/TASS/Getty Images

China's U.N. Ambassador Zhang Jun stated in his press briefing that over 130 patients have been cured of pneumonia caused by the coronavirus in New York City, New York, U.S., on Jan. 31.

70/116 SLIDES © Guglielmo Mangiapane/Reuters

Passengers are seen onboard the Costa Smeralda cruise ship as it sits docked at the Italian port of Civitavecchia on Jan. 30. The ship was quarantined over fears of coronavirus but the passengers were allowed to disembark later.

71/116 SLIDES © P. Ravikumar/Reuters

Medical staff with protective clothing are seen inside a ward specialized in treating people who may have been infected with the virus, at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General hospital in Chennai, India, on Jan. 29.

72/116 SLIDES © Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images

Travelers are seen wearing a protective mask during check-in at the Changi Airport in Singapore on Jan. 30.

73/116 SLIDES © Aamir Qureshi/AFP/Getty Images

An official of Pakistan-based Chinese company (R) uses a thermo gun to check the temperature of the company's drivers in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Jan. 30, after instructions from authorities to take preventive measures against the virus.

74/116 SLIDES © Kin Cheung/AP Photo

Elderly men are seen wearing masks as a precaution at a park in Hong Kong on Jan. 30.

75/116 SLIDES © Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters

A worker uses a thermometer to check the temperature of a customer as she enters a Starbucks shop in Beijing, on Jan. 30.

76/116 SLIDES © Fabian Hamacher/Reuters

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen speaks during a news conference on the coronavirus outbreak in Taipei, Taiwan, on Jan. 30.

77/116 SLIDES © Thai Government Spokesman's office via AP

Thailand Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha (C) speaks to journalists during a visit to Suvarnabhumi Airport to inspect measures in place to monitor passengers as they arrive in Bangkok, Thailand, on Jan. 29.

78/116 SLIDES © Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin/Reuters

Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to Health Minister Mikhail Murashko during a meeting on preventing the spread of the virus in Moscow, Russia, on Jan. 29.

79/116 SLIDES © Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters

Children are seen wearing facial masks as a precaution after Nepal confirmed the first case of coronavirus in the country, at Matribhumi School in Madhyapur Thimi, Nepal, on Jan. 29.

80/116 SLIDES © Denis Balibouse/Reuters

Tedros Adhanom, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), speaks during a news conference at the United Nations, in Geneva, on Jan. 29.

81/116 SLIDES © Ahmed Yosri/Reuters

Passengers from China are checked by Saudi Health Ministry employees upon their arrival at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Jan. 29.

82/116 SLIDES © Dave Rowland/Getty Images

Passengers arriving on flights wear protective masks at the international airport in Auckland, New Zealand, on Jan. 29.

83/116 SLIDES © Carl Court/Getty Images

An ambulance carrying a Japanese citizen repatriated from Wuhan, who showed flu-like symptoms during in-flight screening for coronavirus, leaves Haneda Airport in Tokyo, Japan, on Jan. 29.

84/116 SLIDES © Tang Chhin Sothy/AFP/Getty Images

Students disinfect their hands before entering class at a school in Phnom Penh, on Jan. 28. Cambodia's health ministry reported the country's first case of coronavirus on Jan. 27.

85/116 SLIDES © Sam Yeh/AFP/Getty Images

A woman wearing a protective mask prays at the Lungshan Temple on the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, in Taipei, Taiwan, on Jan. 28.

86/116 SLIDES © Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters

Paramilitary officers wearing face masks stand guard at the Tiananmen Gate in Beijing, on Jan. 27.

Dr. David Williams, the chief medical officer of Ontario (C), speaks as Dr. Eileen de Villa, medical officer of health for the city of Toronto (L) and Dr. Barbara Yaffe, Ontario's associate chief medical officer of health, during a press briefing on coronavirus at Queens Park in Toronto, Canada, on Jan. 27. The Ontario health officials announced the confirmation of the first case of coronavirus in Toronto, along with a presumptive second case of the virus in the city.

Images captured by a thermographic imaging device to check the temperatures of arriving passengers at a quarantine station are seen on a monitor at the Oscar Arnulfo Romero International Airport in San Luis Talpa, El Salvador, on Jan. 26.

A security force member stands in front of the pandemic center where a suspected case of coronavirus is under observation at Félix Houphouët Boigny International Airport in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, on Jan. 26.

A banner placed by Indian health workers is seen during a coronavirus information camp for travelers at an India-Nepal border crossing, near Siliguri, India, on Jan. 26.

(L-R) Sabine Hagenauer of the infection department at the 4th medical department of Kaiser Franz Josef Hospital, Michael Binder, medical director of the Vienna Hospital Association, and Judith Aberle of the department of virology, Medical University Vienna, address a press conference at Kaiser-Franz-Josef hospital in Vienna, Austria, on Jan. 26. A Chinese flight attendant was quarantined in the hospital with symptoms of flu, in what authorities suspected as the first coronavirus case in the country.

A health worker checks the temperature of a woman entering a subway station in Beijing, on Jan. 25.

Dozens of diggers work to build a new hospital in Wuhan, on Jan. 25. Due to the large number of infected people, the government decided to establish a temporary 1,000-bed hospital.

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam addresses a press conference in Hong Kong on Jan. 25. Announcing a citywide virus emergency, Lam ordered the cancellation of all official trips to mainland China and school shutdown till Feb. 17.

Security personnel wearing hazardous material suits measure body temperatures of passenger at the entrance of a subway station in Beijing on Jan. 25.

A disinfection worker wearing protective gear sprays anti-septic solution in a train at SRT train station in Seoul, on Jan. 24.

Dr. Allison Arwady, commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health, speaks to reporters about a patient who has been diagnosed with coronavirus, in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., on Jan. 24.

A Rospotrebnadzor (Russian Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Well-Being) official uses a thermal imaging device to conduct a temperature check of passengers arriving at Krasnoyarsk International Airport on a plane from Cam Rahn, Vietnam, in Russia on Jan. 23.

Francisco Alvarez, the regional public health officer, speaks to dockworkers about the new coronavirus, in the port of Valparaiso, Chile, on Jan. 23.

Sanitation workers spray a disinfectant at Suseo Station in Seoul, on Jan. 24.

A passenger holds up an Australian Government document pertaining to the coronavirus as passengers arrive at Sydney International Airport in Australia on Jan. 23.

Locals wear face masks while browsing in a store ahead of the Lunar New Year, in Taipei, on Jan. 23, 2020. A day earlier, Taiwan stopped sending tour groups to, or receiving tour groups from Wuhan, China, due to concerns over the cornonavirus outbreak.

Airport personnel look at thermal scanners as they check on arriving passengers at the Manila International Airport in Philippines on Jan. 23.

Passengers arriving from China are screened at Kolkata International Airport, India, on Jan. 22, 2020. Screening centers have been set up in the Indian cities of Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Cochin apart from three airports at Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata to screen for the coronavirus.

Director-General of World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, takes part in a news conference after a meeting of the International Health Regulations (IHR) Emergency Committee to discuss about the outbreak of Pneumonia in China and other countries due to the 2019-nCoV, in Geneva, on Jan. 22.

A worker disinfects a railway station in Wuhan on Jan. 22.

Passengers wear masks at a subway station in Hong Kong on Jan. 22.

Deputy Australian Prime Minister Michael McCormack (L) and Prime Minister Scott Morrison (C) are updated by Chief Medical Officer Professor Brendan Murphy on the steps being taken to control the virus, at the National Incident Room of the Department of Health in Canberra, Australia, on Jan. 22.

Li Bin (C), vice minister of China's National Health Commission, answers questions during a press conference on Jan. 22.

Kazakh sanitary-epidemiological service worker uses a thermal scanner to detect travelers from China who may have symptoms possibly connected with the coronavirus at Almaty International Airport in Kazakhstan Jan. 21.

People walk next to signage detailing hygienic practices to prevent the spread of the coronavirus at the Huashan Hospital in Shanghai, China, on Jan. 21.

Health officials watch travelers on a thermographic monitor at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, Malaysia, on Jan. 21.

The Huanan Wholesale Seafood Market, where a number of people related to the market fell ill with the virus, sits closed in Wuhan on Jan. 21.

Medical staff transfer patients to Jinyintan hospital where patients infected with the coronavirus are being treated, in Wuhan on Jan. 20.

A stock investor checks prices at a brokerage house in Fuyang, China, on Jan. 21. China's market went down by 1.4 percent after the news of the coronavirus.

A passenger walks past a notice for passengers from Wuhan, displayed near a quarantine station at Narita International Airport in Japan on Jan. 17.

116/116 SLIDES

"Looking forward to getting back to normal. I haven't driven a car for 45 days."

The couple were also looking forward to taking off their face masks, which they said made Darwin's humid temperatures feel hotter.

Mr and Mrs Donnelly had nothing but praise for the staff on the cruise ship and at the Manigurr-ma residential village in Howard Springs.

But they said they felt the Federal Government could have done more to bring Australians home sooner.

Mr and Mrs Donnelly are two of about 150 Australians heading home today after two weeks in quarantine in Howard Springs.

Altogether, 45 people were tested at the camp, and eight of them tested positive for coronavirus.

Those who tested positive in the centre were medically transferred to their home states, and one man later died in Perth.

'A day of joy'

Australian Border Force Commander Colin Drysdale said the guests were happy to be heading home, and praised the mission as a success.

"There were almost 50,000 meals prepared, and nearly 1,000 maintenance requests finalised," he said.

"There's been on average 190 staff supporting the efforts on a daily basis here.

"This is a day of joy for them as well."

Australian Medical Assistance Teams (AUSMAT) mission leader Abi Trewin said it was great to be able to see passengers and staff sit together without masks.

"We're very proud to see everyone leave today happy and healthy," she said.

At Microsoft News Australia we've partnered with the giving platform Benevity to raise funds for UNICEF: Donate now and help health workers in the battle against the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Coronavirus Health Information Line
Call 1800 020 080 if you are seeking information on novel coronavirus (COVID-19). The line operates Monday–Friday from 8am to 8pm, Saturdays from 8am to 5pm, and Sundays from 9am to 5pm.

Microsoft may earn an Affiliate Commission if you purchase something through recommended links in this article

Diamond Princess coronavirus evacuees leave Howard Springs camp after weeks in quarantine

'A day of joy'

Severe cyclones are spreading further south and it could mean tens of billions in damages

NSW Government may sell off remaining stake in WestConnex to pay for infrastructure projects

SA zoo lioness loses five cubs in stillbirth tragedy

Did you find the story interesting?

Send MSN Feedback

We appreciate your input!