Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship Outbreak: 600 Sickened by Norovirus, CDC Cuts Voyage Short
A Royal Caribbean cruise ship outbreak had to be cut short Friday after over 600 people were sickened aboard the Explorer of the Seas. The ship was ordered by the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention to return to its starting point, Bayonne, N.J., because of a possible outbreak of norovirus.
The Royal Caribbean cruise ship outbreak ended up shortening the 10-day voyage to eight days after 577 passengers out of 3,050 and 49 crew members out of 1,165 reported diarrhea, vomiting, dizziness and upset stomachs, according to the CDC. The cruise liner attempted to stop the tide of sickness by sanitizing surfaces while docking in Puerto Rico, but by the time the ship came to St. Thomas, the bug had already spread.
"New reports of illness have decreased day-over-day, and many guests are again up and about. Nevertheless, the disruptions caused by the early wave of illness means that we were unable to deliver the vacation our guests were expecting," Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. said in a statement Sunday.
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"After consultation between our medical team and representatives of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, we think the right thing to do is to bring our guests home early, and use the extra time to sanitize the ship even more thoroughly," they added.
Some passengers thought they had food poisoning at first because of the symptoms.
"I started with upset stomach and vomiting, and that lasted all night and into the morning," Joseph Angelillo told CNN. He said even some entertainers onboard were sick as well.
The sickness, which spread rapidly since the Explorer of the Seas' departure Jan. 21, has not yet been confirmed as norovirus, as more testing is needed. To combat the disease, the infected were quarantined, Arnee Dodd, a passenger aboard the ship, tweeted recently. She also said employees "put a lock down on food & are constantly cleaning everything."
Passengers and crew are "[responding] well to over-the-counter medication being administered onboard the ship," Janet Diaz, a Royal Caribbean representative, told the Associated Press.
"All possible measures will have been taken to prevent further problems," Royal Caribbean stated.
