A European passenger from the Artania cruise ship who was infected with coronavirus has died in a West Australian hospital.

Key points: The ship docked a week ago after two life-threatening emergencies on board

The ship docked a week ago after two life-threatening emergencies on board The WA Premier has called for the Commonwealth to resolve the problem

The WA Premier has called for the Commonwealth to resolve the problem Most passengers have flown home, but ship is refusing to leave Fremantle

WA health authorities have confirmed a male foreign national aged in his 60s died at Joondalup Health Campus.

More than 40 passengers and crew who contracted the virus were taken off the Artania for treatment at Perth hospitals over the past week, after the vessel docked at Fremantle Port on March 27.

It brings the number of COVID-19 deaths in WA to three and takes the national coronavirus death toll to 28.

WA's Health Minister Roger Cook expressed his sadness at the man's passing.

"Sadly, we've lost a patient overnight," Mr Cook said.

"Our thoughts are with his family in this very, very difficult time."

The death comes as another seven crew members who remained on board the ship were diagnosed with COVID-19 overnight.

Another two had already been taken off the ship to be treated at Joondalup Health Campus yesterday.

Mr Cook said he understood in excess of 25 people were taken off the boat on Friday and the ship remained under the supervision of the Australian Border Force (ABF).

"Crew members taken off the ship as a result of being COVID positive, will not necessarily go to a WA hospital," he said.

"They'll probably be in a quarantine in a Perth hotel.

"This is a Border Force operation."

Some crew members disembarked from the Artania on Friday. ( ABC News )

Mr Cook said a "deep clean" of the ship was underway as the staff remained isolated in cabins while their health was monitored.

"We're confident that we won't see any extended spread in relation to the measures that ABF have put in place," he said.

Crew refuse request to leave port

WA Premier Mark McGowan yesterday urged the Artania to leave Australian waters, fearing if its 464 crew on board become sick they could overwhelm WA's health system.

Premier Mark McGowan (right) has called for the Commonwealth to get the ship to leave Australian waters. ( ABC News: Hugh Sando )

Most passengers were flown to Germany on charter flights organised by Phoenix Reisen, the German-registered cruise company which operates the ship, on March 29.

About a dozen passengers deemed unfit to fly were later transferred to a hotel in Perth's CBD.

The crew has told the Australian Border Force (ABF), which issued the ship a directive to leave Australian waters, that they wanted to remain in port for another two weeks.

WA COVID-19 snapshot Confirmed cases so far: 661

Confirmed cases so far: 661 Recovered: 648

Recovered: 648 Deaths: 9

Deaths: 9 Total tests: 392,908 Latest information from the WA Health Department





None of the passengers or crew from the vessel are Australian.

The ABF confirmed 12 crew members, none of them critical to the vessel's operation, were tested for COVID-19 yesterday and had been isolated on board to await their results.

ABF Commissioner Michael Outram said the MV Artania's crew members could be safely quarantined on board given the size of the ship.

A spokesperson from the Department of Home Affairs did not provide an update on the outcome of those tests when asked on Friday.

"If we can get to the point after ... a few more days when everyone can be satisfied that there's no more spread of disease on the boat it can make its way and we are all looking forward to that day."

The cruise ship has been docked at Fremantle Port since last Friday after initially anchoring offshore. ( ABC News: Andrew O'Connor )

Artania makes up almost half new WA cases

There were 22 new cases of COVID-19 in Western Australia overnight, bringing the state's total to 422.

Of these, nine were from the Artania, 10 from the Perth metropolitan area and three from the Wheatbelt.

The new cases are all adults aged between 37 and 81.

Excluding the Artania cases, WA recorded just 13 new cases in the past 24 hours, continuing the slow progression of new cases within the state this week.

There are now 56 COVID-19 cases in Perth metropolitan hospitals, and 16 of these are in intensive care.

Some of the Artania crew are being quarantined at the Novotel hotel in Perth. ( ABC News: James Carmody )

In contrast, Mr Cook said 92 of WA's cases had now recovered.

He said 912 people presented to COVID-19 clinics in hospitals across the city yesterday after testing criteria was expanded to include community members with a fever and acute respiratory infection.

Of the total who presented, 569 were tested after being assessed.

"As a comparison the previous day 298 were swabbed, so [we are] almost doubling the number of tests in the metropolitan area," he said.

Who should present to COVID-19 clinics? People who have EITHER a fever of 38 degrees Celsius OR acute respiratory infection

People who have Symptoms to look out for include fever, shortness of breath, cough or sore throat

Symptoms to look out for include or Patients who are tested should remain isolated at home until they receive their test results. Major clinics have been set up at Perth hospitals including Royal Perth, Sir Charles Gairdner, Fiona Stanley, Joondalup, Armadale, Rockingham and St John of God Midland. They are open from 8:00am–8:00pm daily. In Southern WA a clinic is operating at Bunbury Health Campus from 10:00am–4:00pm daily. In Northern WA a clinic is operating at Broome Hospital from 8:30am–4:00pm daily. Outside these areas, people with symptoms should present to their local hospital. For more information go to the Health Department website.

Healthcare workers sent to Kimberley

Another 30 WA healthcare workers are to be deployed to the state's Kimberley to help deal with what the Premier described as a "very worrying" situation in the region.

While there were no new cases in the Kimberley identified overnight, six positive cases were identified earlier this week — all of them West Australian Country Health Service workers — bringing the total number in the region to 12.

This led to the Government imposing travel restrictions within the region that go beyond the tough measures already imposed in other parts of the state.

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One of the six cases was an emergency department nurse, Mr Cook said.

"As a result we have a number of staff who aren't COVID-positive but are obviously close contacts, and are self-isolating," he said.

"We don't have the large work pools that the metropolitan hospitals have to draw on and that's why we're moving people up there."

One nursing team was deployed to the region on Monday to "assist with day-to-day operations" and Mr Cook said another team of 30 clinical staff would be deployed in the next 24 hours to provide backup.

Mr Cook said from this morning testing criteria in the Kimberley had been expanded, in line with the metropolitan area, meaning anybody in the region with a fever or flu-like symptoms could be tested at a clinic.

"The expansion of our testing will really help us to meet our key objectives which is about finding new cases, protecting the vulnerable and understanding the spread of the virus in the community," he said.

Mr McGowan said extra police were expected to be sent to the region to enforce border restrictions that have been put in place, with the help of State Emergency Service workers and the army.

"I personally am very worried about the Kimberley, these areas, because obviously if coronavirus gets into remote communities it could be very, very difficult to manage and I just want to make sure some of the most vulnerable Australians are protected as best we can," he said.