Princess Cruise Line has decided to bring the Crown Princess cruise ship back to port 2 days early after another outbreak of gastrointestinal illness. The 3,080 passenger cruise ship is returning to Ft Lauderdale from a cruise to the Southern Caribbean for an extensive 2 day cleaning.
The cruise line reported that 114 passengers and 59 crew members became sick with vomiting and diarrhea, symptoms of norovirus. This is after the ship had over 400 passengers and crew become ill last week. The ship was disinfected when it arrived in port on Saturday morning and caused the current cruise to be delayed by a couple hours.
Princess Cruise Line release the following statement, “”We sincerely regret having to cut short our passengers’ cruise vacations because of this highly unusual situation”. The decision to bring the ship back 2 days early came after a consultation with the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention.
The 2 day cleaning will consist of additional cleaning crews and multiple sanitizations of cabins.
The cruise line will offer full refunds to all of the passengers on board and will help in arrangements with flights home. The cruise line will also cover any change flight fees and hotel accommodations if they are necessary. The passengers will also receive a 25% credit good for a future cruise.
The norovirus is extremely contagious and is easily spread in confined places like cruise ships, schools, dormitories, and hospitals. It is the second most common illness after the common cold. A wave of sickness has hit several cruise ships in the past week as this is peak season for the virus.
If you are going on a cruise, here are some tips on staying healthy and avoiding sickness while on the ship.
The Crown Princess is scheduled to depart with the next scheduled cruise to Aruba and the Bahamas on Saturday, February 11. Carnival Cruise Line is the parent company of Princess.
The cruise lines want to blame the passengers but, in fact, the virus stays on the ship.
Prior to going on any vacation, I pack antibacterial cleaning supplies. I go through a thorough cleaning of my rooms/cabins upon entering. Fortunately, we haven’t been required to take our life jackets to the drills on the past couple of cruises. I NEVER use glasses to drink from that are in my room. I clean everything down to light switches, all door knobs, cabinet pulls, remote, headboard etc…basically anything my skin might touch I clean. I do this on the airplane as well. People can look at me crazy all they want, but I haven’t gotten sick.
I’m excited for my cruise vacation. I’ve spent thousands on the cruise and airfare. I feel a little sick, a little stomach bug, probably nothing. I’ll be fine, not going to throw away all that money for a tummy-ache…
Has anyone addressed sanitizing LIFE JACKETS? At the beginning of every cruise you don your life vest and attend the emergency drill. After the drill, the jacket goes back into it’s compartment. All it takes is one sick passenger to wear the vest for one hour and then put it away. The virus sits on the life vest waiting to infect the next person who wears it. From there it’s all over the ship
That’s a good point Nanette. Our family experienced this virus after a cruise out of Ft. Lauderdale on a Carnival ship a few years ago. Seems the cruise industry has yet to solve the problem.