But up to 100 Australians could still be stuck in Wuhan as the death toll from the coronavirus in mainland China continues to rise. With more than 800 deaths, the toll now surpasses that of the 2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak. The first American death has been confirmed and there are more than 37,500 infections worldwide. Passengers leave the flight. Professor Murphy said there were no current plans for any further evacuation flights. "I know that the Department of Foreign Affairs is in contact with people on the ground in Wuhan; we've certainly brought off the people at greatest risk," he said, adding that there was capacity at the Howard Springs mining camp site outside Darwin to quarantine more people if needed. An estimated 100,000 Chinese students with visas to study at Australian education institutions remain stuck in China, unable to resume their studies as long as travel bans and other quarantine measures are in place.

Two women still trapped in Wuhan urged the Australian government to get them out. Loading Lily, a mother of two who did not wish to share her surname, said she and her two children were stuck in Wuhan after not being selected for the last scheduled Qantas evacuation flight to Darwin on Saturday. "One is in grade 12 and the other in grade 8. If we can't go back to Australia by April, [the elder one] will have to re-study at grade 12," Lily said. "The children are very anxious, hoping to return to school as soon as possible. We are currently in good health, but we are worried about being infected."

Her compatriot, Julia, who also asked to be referred to only by her first name, said she had been "left high and dry in Wuhan". "My only son is in Melbourne. I have been very upset for not being chosen in the first two batches [to be evacuated]," Julia said. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video "I hope the Australian government can rescue me." The complex operation to get Australians out of Wuhan came as the government pinned its hopes on there being an imminent breakthrough in containing the virus to avoid a multibillion-dollar impact on the economy, including the education sector.

Education Minister Dan Tehan has warned that disruptions could significantly affect the crucial sector, after ratings agency S&P said universities could lose about $3 billion in revenue from fees if Chinese students missed the first teaching period due to travel bans and quarantine requirements. Mr Tehan said universities were doing their own assessments but agreed there would be a big impact should the entire first semester be disrupted. "It's very much wait and see what happens," he told Sky News on Sunday morning. "But my hope is that we will see some sort of a breakthrough and we will be able to get students here for the first semester, but we will have to wait and see." Following criticism of the Chinese government's handling of the outbreak, China's consul-general in Sydney, Gu Xiaojie, said China had always "adopted an open, transparent and responsible" attitude to sharing information. Chinese social media site Weibo has been gripped by the death last week of 34-year-old doctor Li Wenliang, who first tried to alert his fellow medical workers in December to the spread of the disease before being ordered by the government to stop spreading rumours.

Mr Gu said the Chinese government had adopted comprehensive and rigorous prevention measures to curb the spread of the virus. Loading "The World Health Organisation continues to have confidence in China's capacity to control the outbreak," he said. Mr Gu accused sections of the Australian media of sensationalising the virus. "We need solidarity rather than alienation." The consul-general said it was "regrettable" that Australia had imposed entry restrictions on foreign tourists from mainland China, and there had been instances of discriminatory behaviour towards Chinese citizens.