A woman in her 70s who was a passenger on the Ruby Princess cruise ship which docked in Sydney has become the seventh person to die from COVID-19 in NSW.
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The woman died in hospital on Tuesday morning taking the national toll to eight, NSW Health said in a statement.
"There have been 107 cases diagnosed in NSW from the Ruby Princess and 26 cases interstate," the health department spokesperson said.
The Ruby Princess berthed at Circular Quay on Thursday.
The woman who died was one of three initial passengers whose specimen was taken on board but tested positive after the ship docked.
NSW is at a "critical" stage as the number of COVID-19 cases soars past 800 with the premier warning that people who ignore social distancing rules will receive harsh penalties.
Gladys Berejiklian said the state was sitting on the precipice of a more serious outbreak and had to avoid the mistakes of other countries.
The number of COVID-19 cases reached 818 on Tuesday - an increase of 149 overnight.
Twelve people are in intensive care with eight of them requiring ventilators.
Two teachers at Normanhurst West Public School in Thornleigh have been diagnosed with COVID-19.
The cases were confirmed on Saturday and Monday with the school remaining closed on Tuesday.
There are 13 cases in NSW linked to the Ovation of the Seas cruise ship which docked in Sydney last Wednesday, and another seven cases who were on board the Voyager of the Seas which disembarked on the same day.
A further three people have tested positive to COVID-19 at BaptistCare's Dorothy Henderson Lodge in Macquarie Park.
Three of the facility's residents have so far died after contracting coronavirus.
An additional case has been diagnosed in NSW from a rugby match held at the University of Sydney on March 14. A second person also tested positive but lives in the ACT.
The University of Technology Sydney on Tuesday confirmed a second student had tested positive for COVID-19 and had been on campus on March 11 and 12.
Both UTS cases were second-year students in the Health Faculty, however "there is no evidence they are linked," a statement from the university said.
The premier implored people to follow social distancing rules and warned authorities are "ramping up" compliance.
"If they're supposed to be in self-isolation and they're not, there are harsh penalties and we'll enforce that. We have to take this seriously."
NSW Attorney-General Mark Speakman introduced a bill to parliament on Tuesday to tackle the spread of the coronavirus in the state.
Under the proposed legislation, police would be able to arrest people reasonably suspected of breaching COVID-19 public health orders and return them home or to their place of detention.
The Corrective Services commissioner could grant conditional parole to certain low-risk and vulnerable offenders before their non-parole period if it were necessary because of the pandemic.
Ms Berejiklian hit back at critics who say she confused people with her decision to keep schools open while encouraging parents to keep children at home if possible.
"I don't want to be another example of a jurisdiction that didn't do what it needed to do at the right time," she said.
NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell said the absentee rate across public schools was 41 per cent on Monday which she expected to increase significantly on Tuesday.
It comes as the NSW Education Standards Authority board confirmed the Higher School Certificate would be proceeding for 2020.
Pubs, cinemas, gyms and churches are now closed across the nation in a bid to slow the spread of coronavirus while public transport in NSW will continue operating despite a steep decline in passengers.
Australian Associated Press
