When a cruise ship is not properly cleaned, sanitized and maintained, innocent passengers can be harmed.
Passengers and Crewmembers Stricken With Norovirus on Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship
According to CNN, dozens of passengers on a four-night Royal Caribbean cruise became sick with a stomach illness. Royal Caribbean was negligent because the cruise line failed to properly clean and sanitize its vessel, causing the spread of illness.
On January 17, The Majesty of the Seas docked in Miami after traveling to the Caribbean, Nassau and CoCoCay in the Bahamas and Key West, Florida. Royal Caribbean stated in a press release that of the 2,500 passengers on the vessel, 66 experienced gastrointestinal issues, including vomiting and diarrhea. Two crew members also fell ill.
Royal Caribbean stated that the illness was caused by norovirus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describes norovirus as a very contagious illness that can be spread by infected persons in contaminated food or water, or through contact with contaminated surfaces. According to the CDC, norovirus affects nearly 20 million people in the US each year, and results in 570 to 800 deaths annually.
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Did You Know: A person can become infected by norovirus after being exposed to just 18 norovirus particles, while the flu requires a person to come in contact with 1000 particles.
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Source: http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/17/travel/cruise-line-passengers-sickened/, http://www.cdc.gov/norovirus/trends-outbreaks.html