More than 100 people have fallen ill following a norovirus outbreak aboard the Caribbean Princess, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC said 102 passengers and 13 crew members reported symptoms during the ship’s April 28 to May 11 voyage, bringing the total number of illnesses to 115. The cruise departed from Fort Lauderdale and is scheduled to arrive in Port Canaveral on May 11 after stops including Aruba, Bonaire, Puerto Rico, and the Bahamas.
According to the CDC report, the main symptoms reported by sick passengers and crew included diarrhea and vomiting. Princess Cruises described the illnesses as “mild gastrointestinal illness.”
The CDC noted that the reported cases occurred over the entire voyage and do not mean all passengers became sick at the same time.
Norovirus is one of the most common causes of gastrointestinal illness on cruise ships. Cruise industry experts said outbreaks often begin when infected passengers unknowingly board a ship and spread the virus in close-contact settings.
The CDC said the outbreak surpassed its 3% threshold for public notification. Health officials are now conducting an environmental assessment and outbreak investigation through the agency’s Vessel Sanitation Program.
Cruise ships are considered high-risk environments because passengers and crew spend extended periods in close quarters.
To limit transmission, Princess Cruises said it increased cleaning and disinfection procedures, isolated sick passengers and crew members, collected stool samples for testing, and worked closely with the CDC on sanitation measures and reporting requirements.
“We quickly disinfected every area of the ship and added extra sanitizing throughout the voyage,” the company said in a statement.
While norovirus spreads easily, cruise ship outbreaks account for only a small percentage of overall cases in the United States. Experts noted that millions of norovirus infections occur annually, most of them outside cruise settings.
The current outbreak aboard the Caribbean Princess is unrelated to the separate hantavirus outbreak linked to the MV Hondius.
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