A new mass case of “cruise ship disease” or norovirus has been recorded on board the liner of the cruise operator Princess Cruises. More than 300 people have been quarantined with diarrhea and vomiting, according to CBC News. Experts suspect mass infection with norovirus, but “patient zero” has not yet been identified.
The incident happened on the Ruby Princess liner on a cruise in America. According to reports, 284 of the 2,881 tourists on board fell ill, and 34 of the 1,159 crew members also showed symptoms. The symptoms of the victims are typical for both poisoning and norovirus – this is primarily vomiting and diarrhea.
According to experts, the “quarantine ship” has already docked in Galveston, Texas, and tourists have turned to doctors for help. But they have not yet determined what caused the disease. Epidemiologists collect samples from passengers for analysis.
While representatives of Princess Cruises, they say that doctors have ordered sick passengers to isolate in their rooms. The company also said the illness was likely caused by norovirus, a highly contagious virus that causes vomiting and diarrhea.
Note that norovirus is sometimes referred to as the cruise ship virus. It is responsible for more than 90% of outbreaks of diarrheal disease on cruise ships. The virus is very contagious, and this is the reason that in the closed space of the liner, it spreads instantly. As well as any fairly “volatile” infection, we recall that at the first stage of the coronavirus pandemic, one after another, news about “quarantine liners” were spread, on which the coronavirus was introduced, after which tourists were literally on board in quarantine. The saga of quarantines, by the way, began with the liner of the same cruise operator – Diamond Princess, which was “quarantined” in Japan. However, it quickly became clear that quarantine on a cruise ship is ineffective and contributes to the spread of the virus.