Over 90 passengers and staff on a Royal Caribbean International cruise ship that left Tampa, Florida, on February 1 for a weeklong trip got sick with stomach problems, leading to vomiting and diarrhea.
CruiseMapper reported that the ship was set to return on Saturday after visiting Cozumel, Roatan Islands, Belize City, and Costa Maya.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a press statement that the outbreak occurred on Royal Caribbean’s Radiance of the Seas. It’s unclear what made someone sick.
The CDC’s Vessel Sanitation Program found out about the outbreak on Tuesday, halfway through the ship’s trip.
Royal Caribbean didn’t reply right away to a request for a word on Friday, and it’s not clear if the outbreak changed the schedule.
The ship has 2,164 guests and 910 crew members. The CDC reported that 89 passengers and two team members got sick. Everyone who is sick has been kept away from others, and the crew is taking stool samples from those with stomach illnesses for testing.
The CDC says that norovirus often causes stomach sickness on cruise ships and can be detected in a stool sample.
“The agency said that tests are still waiting to be confirmed for this outbreak.”
To stop the illness from spreading, the ship’s crew stepped up cleaning and disinfecting.
“VSP is watching the situation from a distance and checking the ship’s response to the outbreak and cleaning practices,” the press release says.
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