Posted on 02/24/2010 5:06:39 AM PST by Peter Horry
More than one in five passengers aboard the Celebrity Mercury cruise ship that departed Charleston more than a week ago has fallen ill with a stomach disorder, so many people that the ship recruited extra medical professionals from a Caribbean island before heading back toward Charleston.
The gastrointestinal affliction includes vomiting and diarrhea and seems symptomatic of norovirus, a stomach flu most commonly found in confined places, such as cruise ships, hospitals and prisons.
(Excerpt) Read more at postandcourier.com ...
Yep, sounds like norovirus. We had a smaller outbreak on one of our cruises a few years back. There is literally nothing that can be done to prevent this type of thing when you are dealing with that many people in such close quarters.
hurl leeward
Sounds like food poisoning.....
“There is literally nothing that can be done to prevent this type of thing when you are dealing with that many people in such close quarters.”
You can reduce the frequency and number of people infected. Keeping the ship clean and improving the materials used in common areas are two steps.
No kidding, Sherlock!
A lot of this has to do with the cleanliness of the common spaces and the kitchen. You just gotta beat your people until they comply. The staff is going to think you’re crazy, but it’s the only way.
Does anyone recall outbreaks like this on US Navy ships? I don’t.
With the many foreign crew members and their lack of experience with sanitary standards, situations like these illnesses are prone to happen.
Nothing like spewing and squirting with a few thousand of your closest friends.
To be fair, we need spew cruise reparations.
This kind of thing doesn't happen on US aircraft carriers. Maybe the cruise lines should ask for a few pointers.
I love cruises, but I shudder to think of all the third-worlders (and their notions of sanitation) working the kitchens.
Since early January the S.C Department of Health and Environmental Control has been investigating more than twice the usual number of stomach-related illnesses reported across the state, the agency announced Tuesday.
So...SC has had twice the number of suspected norovirus in the last 2 months and a cruise ship leaves charleston, sc sounds like an easy diagnosis
Those ships are kept very clean. There are crewmembers walking around 24/7 wiping handrails, etc. You can’t monitor every passenger for illness and be sure they aren’t infecting others. You just can’t. People have to be responsible for their own observance of good hygiene. Unfortunately, some just don’t get it.
It could be a combination of cleanliness and passengers already exposed before they arrived and then it spread. Within the last 2 weeks, a really nasty stomach bug has been going around my local area...at least we’ve seen a ton of kids with fever, vomiting and diarrhea at the the clinic. Whole families coming in.
Post 10
Not to mention doing it during your dream vacation. You’ve saved for it, you’ve planned for it and THIS is the way it turns out.... bummer.
I’m sure there are outbreaks on Navy ships, they just aren’t newsworthy.
That is part of the reason you have these outbreaks: people have paid for and looked forward to their vacation. They aren’t going to stay home and lose their money just because they have a little stomach bug.
>>>>”that many people in such close quarters”>>>>
You just summed up my reason for refusing to ever get trapped on a cruise ship.
You’re going to miss out on a lot in life if you avoid all such situations. I’ve been on 5 cruises. Never had any problem.
I'm sure they put on a good show... But that doesn't mean much.
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