Sickness bug delays cruise (From Daily Echo)
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Celebrity Eclipse hit by nororvirus
6:30am Thursday 29th September 2011 in News
Celebrity Eclipse hit by nororvirus
THE planned spectacle of two of Royal Caribbean's ships leaving Southampton together for the first time was last night scuppered by an outbreak of a vomiting bug.
The departure of the Celebrity Eclipse was delayed for “enhanced sanitation” after dozens of passengers returning to Southampton at 5am yesterday morning from a 11-night eastern Mediterranean cruise had been struck down by the Norovirus.
Sick passengers disembarking the cruise ship at the city's Ocean Terminal reported seeing “people walking around in Ghostbusters suits” ready to disinfect the vessel and the terminal.
Passengers waiting to board the 14-deck, 122,000 tonne vessel for its next cruise were delayed by hours.
Celebrity Eclipse, which can accommodate up to 2,852 passengers, had joined another Royal Caribbean vessel, Independence of the Seas, in Southampton for the first time.
But they left separately as the scheduled departure of Celebrity Eclipse at 4.30pm for a 16-night Western Mediterranean and Adriatic Coast cruise had to be put back by about half an hour.
A spokeswoman for Celebrity Cruises said “in an abundance of caution” it conducted “enhanced sanitizing onboard the ship and within the cruise terminal to help prevent any illness from affecting the next sailing”.
She apologised for the delay and thanked passengers for their understanding.
“The health and well-being of our guests is very important to us and we believe that these additional measures will further assist in ensuring that our guests enjoy a fun, relaxing and healthy experience,” she said.
The spokeswoman said a small number of passengers onboard the Celebrity Eclipse had fallen ill with gastrointestinal illness, but had responded well to over-the-counter medication administered onboard the ship.
Norovirus is an extremely common gastrointestinal illness which frequently strikes cruise ships. Only the common cold is more prevalent.
According to health specialists, about 300 million people in the world are affected by Norovirus every year
Comments(8)
LadySam
says...
3:15pm Thu 29 Sep 11
Imagine spending all that money on a cruise and then spend the whole time vomiting and sight seeing from your porthole thanks to some other manky person!
Lone Ranger.
says...
4:30pm Thu 29 Sep 11
LadySam wrote:You paint an eloquant picture
Yuk...I can't imagine anything worse than being cooped up on a cruise ship with a load of other people with tummy bugs. It must be a lot to do with poor hygiene for example, not washing your hands.
Imagine spending all that money on a cruise and then spend the whole time vomiting and sight seeing from your porthole thanks to some other manky person!
forest hump
says...
6:48pm Thu 29 Sep 11
espanuel wrote:We did. It was not reported.
Why didnt we get Norovirus on the cruise liners in the 1960s? and the atlantic voyages that we used do and then getting into Southampton and doing a 3 day turnaround.
Edwick
says...
11:35am Fri 30 Sep 11
I wonder if these are not cleaned as often and harbour the germs which quickly spread through the modern cruise ship.
.
Southampton Cruiser
says...
5:17pm Fri 30 Sep 11
forest hump
says...
6:36pm Fri 30 Sep 11
Edwick wrote:No, it is simply a case of poor personal hygene. Wash yourself and your hands regularly. Bring back carbolic soap!
In the 1970'S and 1980'S on the P & O ships the air conditioning system filters were cleaned on a regular basis. I wonder if these are not cleaned as often and harbour the germs which quickly spread through the modern cruise ship. .
septuagenarian
says...
5:00pm Sat 1 Oct 11
espanuel wrote:'Delli Belly' is spread by poor personal hygiene, poor cleansing regimes, bad/inadequate sanitation. On cruise ships, it could no doubt be exacerbated
Why didnt we get Norovirus on the cruise liners in the 1960s? and the atlantic voyages that we used do and then getting into Southampton and doing a 3 day turnaround.
by the employment of scew members from the Calcutta region (cheep labour), in the kitchens, hence it's name.
espanuel says...
2:22pm Thu 29 Sep 11