The Ruby Princess Cruise ship has over 300 sick passengers, CDC says

The Ruby Princess Cruise operated by Princess Cruises recently had more than 300 sick passengers and crew members, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

According to the organization’s website

34 staff members and 284 of the ship’s 2,881 guests reported getting ill during the cruise on February 26. The main complaints of the travelers were diarrhea and vomiting.

The CDC stated on its website

that environmental health officers and epidemiologists from the (Vessel Sanitation Program) carried out a field response in Galveston, Texas, on March 5. They performed “a targeted environmental assessment of health to check for exposure and pathways of illness transmission and observed the outbreak of ship prevention and response plan processes” while they were on board, according to a CDC representative in an email. The epidemic investigating team is now reviewing its conclusions. The incidents were minor and most likely brought on by the norovirus. According to the CDC’s website, the causal agent is unknown. The Princess spokesman said, “With the first indication of a rise in the number of passengers reporting to the medical center with gastrointestinal illness, we promptly implemented further enhanced sanitization processes to stop the person-to-person spread of this virus.

A rise in norovirus cases: Should travelers be concerned?

What if you become sick or injured on a cruise ship? (or bitten by a monkey)

The spokesperson stated that this sanitation program was created in collaboration with the CDC and entails actions such as cleaning high-touch areas like railings and elevator buttons, isolating sick passengers in their rooms until they are no longer contagious, and providing “regular verbal and written communication to passengers about steps they can take to stay well while onboard.” Prior to its subsequent cruise, Ruby Princess was likewise sanitized. According to the spokeswoman, the ship will return to Galveston on March 12 after a weeklong trip across the Western Caribbean.

Although the number of norovirus cases in the United States has increased recently, a CDC representative told in February that the numbers are still within the normal range for this time of year.

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