On the second successive cruise, a extreme outbreak of gastrointestinal sickness has been reported aboard Cunard Line’s Queen Mary 2. This most up-to-date report is from the ship’s Christmas crusing, a roundtrip Caribbean crusing from New York that originally departed on Saturday, December 21.
Lower than per week into the 2-week voyage, 223 cruise passengers and 44 crew members have reported signs resembling diarrhea, vomiting, and belly cramps.
This follows an outbreak on the earlier crusing when a complete of 150 visitors and crew members reported related signs. The causative agent for that crusing has not but been confirmed, nor has a trigger been decided for the persevering with outbreak on the present cruise.
In complete, 8.7% of the two,565 vacationers onboard, together with 3.6% of the ship’s 1,233 crew members, have reported signs onboard the ship right now.
Cruise ships are required to report outbreaks to the US Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC) if greater than 3% of both passengers or crew have reported signs to the ship’s medical workers.
It must be famous, nevertheless, that every one experiences don’t should be made on the similar time. The totals are cumulative all through the impacted voyage, and never all visitors or crew members could also be experiencing sickness concurrently.
In response to the primary outbreak, the crew aboard Queen Mary 2 elevated numerous cleansing and disinfection protocols, significantly in public areas and eating places, in an try and mitigate the unfold of the sickness. Sick passengers and crew members had been additionally remoted as a lot as doable.
Sadly, a lot of these outbreaks may be extremely contagious and simply unfold on contaminated surfaces or by way of contaminated meals or water.
The truth that the second outbreak is already impacting the next variety of each visitors and crew members regardless of mitigation measures is very troubling. Additional cleansing and sanitation is bound to be ongoing.
Different steps which may be taken to attenuate any contagious unfold embody limiting any self-service eating choices, cancelling some onboard occasions to attenuate crowds, and offering further info to visitors onboard concerning the significance of correct hand-washing and sanitizer use.
It’s doable that among the experiences for the second outbreak as the identical passengers who might have reported signs in the course of the earlier cruise. Numerous vacationers onboard could possibly be having fun with the total 28-night roundtrip crusing from Southampton, UK – together with each the eastbound and westbound transatlantic crossings.
The 149,215-gross-ton Queen Mary 2, truly an ocean liner moderately than a cruise ship, can welcome as many as 2,695 visitors aboard. Due to the vacation interval, she is crusing very near full capability right now.
Outbreaks Extra Frequent in Winter
In line with the CDC, outbreaks of gastrointestinal diseases, significantly norovirus, are extra widespread in the course of the winter months from November by way of April.
This isn’t solely when extra folks get pleasure from indoor actions in probably crowded conditions, however when vacationers collect for vacation celebrations and might extra simply unfold contagious diseases.
Whereas it isn’t but confirmed whether or not or not norovirus is the reason for the signs reported aboard Queen Mary 2 in latest days, it’s a sturdy probability.
Of 16 particular person illness outbreaks reported to the CDC up to now in 2024, 11 have been confirmed as brought on by norovirus. This consists of an outbreak on Cunard Line’s Queen Victoria reported in late January and early February that affected greater than 100 passengers and crew members.
Different outbreaks have been related to E. coli in addition to salmonella, although these incidents are far more unusual.
Learn Additionally: Cruise Ship Sickness – Easy methods to Defend Your self
Equally, of the 14 complete outbreaks reported in 2023, 13 of them had been attributed to norovirus. No Cunard Line ships reported outbreaks to the CDC in 2023.
Whereas the signs of norovirus and related gastrointestinal diseases can actually be disagreeable, particularly whereas on trip, they usually resolve inside 1-3 days with none sturdy medical intervention. Resting and staying hydrated are the important thing steps in recovering successfully.
