The afflicted guests and staff were on a cruise in the Caribbean which docked in Texas. According to the investigation results from the US based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), just under 10 percent of passengers fell ill with the gastrointestinal illness.
The report states that the main symptoms of the illness were vomiting and diarrhoea and 34 crew members also fell ill.
The cruise, onboard the Ruby Princess, began on February 26 and finished on March 5 in Texas.
According to the report, Princess Cruises increased cleaning and disinfection procedures following the outbreak.
The team also informed the guests of the outbreak and warned the next passengers to embark.
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A Princess Cruises spokesperson said: “Onboard the February 26 sailing of Ruby Princess, there were a number of cases of mild gastrointestinal illness among passengers, the cause likely is the common but contagious virus called Norovirus.
“At the first sign of an increase in the numbers of passengers reporting to the medical centre with gastrointestinal illness, we immediately initiated additional enhanced sanitisation procedures to interrupt the person-to-person spread of this virus. Our sanitation programme has been developed in coordination with the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and includes such measures as thorough disinfection of high-touch surfaces like railings, door handles and elevator buttons; encouraging passengers to use correct hand washing procedures and enhancing this with the use of hand sanitising stations placed throughout the ship; isolating ill passengers in cabins until non-contagious; encouraging passengers to use their own cabin’s bathroom facilities; and providing regular verbal and written communication to passengers about steps they can take to stay well while onboard.
“As an additional precaution, the ship underwent an additional disinfection on March 4 in Galveston ahead of its next departure. The ship is now on a seven-day western Caribbean cruise, returning to Galveston on March 12.”
The Ruby Princess outbreak is thought to be the fourth outbreak of a gastrointestinal illness on a cruise this year.
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