22 June 2020

LAW IN ORDER PTY LIMITED ACN 086 329 044 T: 1300 004 667 W: www.lawinorder.com.au TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS MR B. WALKER SC, Commissioner IN THE MATTER OF A SPECIAL COMMISSION OF INQUIRY INTO THE RUBY PRINCESS SYDNEY 09.30 AM, MONDAY, 22 JUNE 2020 (Continued from 19 June 2020) DAY 15 MR R. BEASLEY SC and MR N. KIRBY appear as counsel assisting the Commission MR D. McLURE SC appears with MR G. O’MAHONEY for Princess Cruise Lines Ltd and Carnival plc t/a Carnival Australia MS G. FURNESS SC appears with MS K. LINDEMAN for the Health Administration Corporation MS J. FRANCIS appears for the Commissioner of Police MS B. BYRNES appears for the International Transport Workers’ Federation, the Maritime Union of Australia, the Australian Institute of Marine Powered Engineers and the Australian Maritime Officers Union RUBY PRINCESS INQUIRY 22.06.2020 P-1689 MR BEASLEY: Commissioner, before we get Ms Whittemore, who is in the virtual waiting room, I will tender a statement of Shaun Devitt, dated 19 June 2020. Mr Devitt is not required to give oral evidence. That is Exhibit number 68. 5 EXHIBIT #68 - STATEMENT BY MR SHAUN DEVITT, DATED 19.06.20 COMMISSIONER: Have the represented parties.... 10 MR BEASLEY: I'm sure it's been circulated to everyone. I'll just ask Mr McLure. COMMISSIONER: Has anybody indicated a desire to ask Mr Devitt questions? 15 MR BEASLEY: I also have to tender, and I understand it is also proposed to tender the audio of this, the recording of the telephone conversation between Steve Howieson and Cameron Butchart that took place on the evening of 18 March 2020. It is that part of --- it is that recording where there was some uncertainty as to what words were used, in particular something to do with an upper ear infection, which 20 I think the document I'm tendering, which I will call "Recording of telephone conversation between Steve Howieson, VTS Manager and Cameron Butchart, Port Services Manager, 18 March 2020 at approximately 10.44 pm" and I will tender with it as part of the one Exhibit the recording of that telephone conversation. 25 COMMISSIONER: Thank you. MR BEASLEY: That is Exhibit 69. 30 EXHIBIT #69 - RECORDING OF TELEPHONE CONVERSATION BETWEEN STEVE HOWIESON, VTS MANAGER AND CAMERON BUTCHART, PORT SERVICES MANAGER, DATED 18.03.2018 AT APPROXIMATELY 10.44 PM WITH THE RECORDING OF THAT TELEPHONE CONVERSATION 35 MR BEASLEY: I can advise the parties, although I can't tender it now, but the Commission has received a statement from Victorian Health regarding the Golden Princess. The reason I can't tender that at the moment is whilst no claim is made for 40 privilege in relation to any documents, there is a claim that will have to go through made by Victorian Health for non-publication orders in relation to some of the documents you summonsed from them. I can tell my friends in brief that in relation to the Golden Princess, after the ship left 45 on 10 March for New Zealand, Victorian Health identified two persons onboard who had been close contacts with people who were confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States. They thereafter ascertained that there were 24 people on the same RUBY PRINCESS INQUIRY 22.06.2020 P-1690 flight from Los Angeles to Melbourne that had then got on the Golden Princess. A decision was made when that ship came back into --- came back to Melbourne --- sailed back to Melbourne on 18 March as to whether or not pratique would be granted. A decision was made not to grant pratique and instead to send on people 5 from Victorian Health onto the ship in the early hours of the morning of 19 March to swab all those onboard who had been placed in quarantine, which was about 30 persons onboard, and that pratique would not be granted until test results came back. Those test results came back at about 4 pm that day and all results were negative. At 10 that point, pratique was granted. There is some discussions between what Victorian Health have described as Carnival Australia. I know I was told to use the term "Princess Cruise Lines" last Friday, but Victorian Health records a couple of conversations with senior people at Carnival Australia about their decision not to grant pratique. I won't expand upon that further. Obviously these documents will be 15 circulated to the interested parties and they will obviously be given an opportunity to respond. Just bear with me one second, Commissioner. That's all the tenders for this morning. 20 Sorry, there is another transcript to tender between Mr Howieson and Dr Ilse von Watzdorf also recording this conversation I will also tender. The conversation took place on 19 March 2020 at approximately 12.06 am. I tender the transcript of that telephone conversation and also the audio recording of it, which will be Exhibit 70. 25 EXHIBIT #70 - TRANSCRIPT OF CONVERSATION BETWEEN MR HOWIESON AND DR ILSE VON WATZDORF DATED 19.03.20 AT APPROXIMATELY 12.06 AM WITH AUDIO RECORDING 30 MR BEASLEY: Now I think we are ready to have the witness, Mrs Whittemore, from California. Hello, Mrs Whittemore. Can you hear me? MS WHITTEMORE: Yes, I can. 35 MR BEASLEY: My name is Richard Beasley. I'm one of the counsel assisting this Special Commission. Can you still hear me? MS WHITTEMORE: Yes. 40 MR BEASLEY: I just want to let you know, just before you are sworn to give your evidence, I want to let you know who else is in the room with me because you may not be able to see them. The Commissioner for this Inquiry is Mr Bret Walker. He's here. 45 COMMISSIONER: Good morning from Australia, Mrs Whittemore. RUBY PRINCESS INQUIRY 22.06.2020 P-1691 MS WHITTEMORE: Good morning. MR BEASLEY: There are also some lawyers in the room representing the NSW Health Department, the NSW Police, and Princess Cruise Lines. I won't identify 5 them by name at the moment. If they seek leave to ask you a question, they will no doubt do that. Do you understand me? MS WHITTEMORE: Yes, I do. 10 MR BEASLEY: Great. Thank you. I will have you sworn in to give your evidence, please. 15 JILL WHITTEMORE, SWORN [9.55 AM] EXAMINATION BY MR BEASLEY SC 20 MR BEASLEY: You gave a statement to the NSW Police Force, do you recall that, dated 28 April 2020? MS WHITTEMORE: Yes, I do. 25 MR BEASLEY: Do you have that statement with you? MS WHITTEMORE: Yes, I do. 30 MR BEASLEY: And it is true and accurate to the best of your knowledge and recollection? MS WHITTEMORE: Yes. 35 MR BEASLEY: Thank you. You travelled on the Ruby Princess with, I think, your mother-in-law and your husband's maternal grandparents, is that right? 40 MS WHITTEMORE: It was my mother --- MR BEASLEY: Your mother --- MS WHITTEMORE: My mother-in-law --- 45 MR BEASLEY: Your mother-in-law? Is that Cheryl? RUBY PRINCESS INQUIRY 22.06.2020 P-1692 MS J. WHITTEMORE XN MR BEASLEY SC MS WHITTEMORE: And her parents. MR BEASLEY: Her parents; is that Paul and Shirley? 5 MS WHITTEMORE: Correct. MR BEASLEY: And you flew into Australia on the morning that the cruise was leaving for New Zealand, flew in from San Francisco; is that right? 10 MS WHITTEMORE: Correct. MR BEASLEY: And there was a delay in boarding the ship? MS WHITTEMORE: Correct. 15 MR BEASLEY: Were you told why the ship had been delayed embarking passengers? MS WHITTEMORE: No. 20 MR BEASLEY: No one was sent a text message giving you any information about that? MS WHITTEMORE: In my party, no, no one received a text message. 25 MR BEASLEY: And no one from either --- no one from the cruise line, for example, explained to you what the hold-up had been? MS WHITTEMORE: No. The only thing, we had gone and asked and they said that 30 they were doing a deep clean. MR BEASLEY: I see. Who did you ask? MS WHITTEMORE: One of the attendants, or one of the Princess --- 35 MR BEASLEY: All right. Did you wait around the Overseas Passenger Terminal or did you go off and get something to eat? MS WHITTEMORE: We did go get something to eat. We walked over to the Opera 40 House and we also walked through the craft fair. MR BEASLEY: All right. When you got on the ship, I understand you did the usual things on the ship; you 45 went to various shows with your travel companions? MS WHITTEMORE: Yes. RUBY PRINCESS INQUIRY 22.06.2020 P-1693 MS J. WHITTEMORE XN MR BEASLEY SC MR BEASLEY: And you ate at various restaurants on the ship? MS WHITTEMORE: Pardon me? 5 MR BEASLEY: You ate at various restaurants on the ship? MS WHITTEMORE: Yes. Mostly the Horizon buffet and two nights at the sit-down dining. 10 MR BEASLEY: Okay. The buffet is obviously where you go and get your own food; is that right? MS WHITTEMORE: Correct. 15 MR BEASLEY: And did that change at any stage during the cruise, that they had crew giving you the food towards the end of the cruise? MS WHITTEMORE: Yes. 20 MR BEASLEY: Were you told why that change had taken place? MS WHITTEMORE: No. 25 MR BEASLEY: Every time you went to have your meals, were crew reminding you to use hand sanitiser and --- MS WHITTEMORE: Yes.

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