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A total of 153 people aboard the cruise ship Star Princess, from the company Princess Cruises, fell ill with norovirus during a week-long trip through the Caribbean, according to reports from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the United States.
Of the total affected, 104 were passengers and 49 were crew members. The reported symptoms included diarrhea and vomiting.
According to the cited report, the cruise completed its journey on Sunday, and the outbreak was reported on Wednesday to the CDC's Vessel Sanitation Program, whose members went to the ship to investigate what happened.
The federal agency stated that the ship had been on a weeklong journey when the illness was reported.
After the outbreak was detected, Princess Cruises implemented additional cleaning and disinfection measures, isolated the sick passengers and crew until they could disembark, and consulted with the CDC regarding best practices to eliminate the virus, which is described in the text as highly contagious and persistent.
According to the available information, the shipping company did not immediately respond to a request for comments made on Saturday.
The Star Princess has a port in Florida and had debuted just five months ago.
According to the specialized site CruiseMapper, cited in a report by Telemundo 51, the ship, which has a capacity of 4,307 passengers, returned to Fort Lauderdale on Sunday and set sail again that same night towards Princess Cays in the Bahamas to begin a new voyage.
A latent threat
The CDC reminded that norovirus is the leading cause of outbreaks of diarrhea and vomiting in the United States. The agency explained that it is transmitted through direct contact between people, by consuming contaminated food or drinks, and by touching contaminated surfaces.
Among the prevention recommendations are frequent disinfection of surfaces and regular hand washing.
The Star Princess features a transparent dome over its concert hall and offers 30 bars and restaurants.
It had set sail on its maiden voyage from Europe in October and was inaugurated the following month by actor Matthew McConaughey and his wife, Camila, who were designated as the ship's godparents, according to a statement from Princess Cruises.
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