Federal health officials reported that more than 140 passengers and crew members contracted norovirus during separate recent voyages on two cruise ships docking in San Francisco and sailing through Alaska.
The U. S.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that 102 passengers and 23 crew members fell ill aboard the Ruby Princess, which completed a 20-day round-trip journey from San Francisco to Canada and Alaska on Thursday.
Simultaneously, the agency monitored a second gastrointestinal illness outbreak within a month aboard Lindblad Expeditions' National Geographic Sea Bird, where 19 passengers and one crew member reported symptoms during a June 25 to June 30 Alaska voyage.
According to the CDC, the Ruby Princess was carrying 3,032 passengers and 1,144 crew members when the outbreak was reported on Saturday, though not all infected individuals were sick at the same time.
The vessel sanitation program noted the National Geographic Sea Bird outbreak on June 28, which affected a significant portion of the 68 passengers and 27 crew members on board during its short Alaskan itinerary.
An earlier outbreak on the same Lindblad vessel from May 26 to May 31 sickened nine passengers and three crew members, with the CDC later identifying the unknown causative agent as norovirus following an environmental assessment.
Public health officials stated that seven illness outbreaks meeting the threshold for public notice have occurred on cruise ships within CDC jurisdiction so far this year, consisting of five norovirus outbreaks and two E.
coli outbreaks.
The highly contagious norovirus causes sudden onset of vomiting, diarrhea, and stomach pain lasting up to three days, spreading rapidly through shared food, water, or contaminated surfaces in crowded environments.
The CDC recommends washing hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds to prevent infection, noting that hand sanitizer alone is ineffective against the virus.
In response to the illness, cruise operators implemented strict management protocols to contain the virus and protect incoming travelers.
"Enhanced sanitation protocols across the ship," stated a Princess Cruises representative.
The operator noted that the Ruby Princess would undergo thorough cleaning and disinfection before its scheduled departure for the next voyage later Thursday.
Similarly, Lindblad Expeditions countered its consecutive outbreaks by increasing cleaning procedures and isolating affected individuals while the CDC's Vessel Sanitation Program reviews the response remotely.
