Royal Caribbean’s ‘Grandeur of the Seas’ reports consecutive outbreaks in last two voyages
For the second time in two weeks, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line’s vessel, Grandeur of the Seas has been struck with a gastrointestinal outbreak affecting both passengers and crew.
During their March 28 – April 5, 2014 voyage, 117 individuals were stricken with norovirus infection, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP). 111 of 2122 passengers on board suffered with the nasty GI virus (5.23%), while six of the nearly 800 crew were taken ill.
The cruise ship was cleaned and sanitized and left for its next voyage on April 5. However, this voyage was also hit with a gastrointestinal outbreak, as of today of unknown etiology.
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The ship, to dock in Baltimore on Saturday, has reported 105 passengers and crew suffering from the symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea.
Two CDC Vessel Sanitation Program environmental health officers and an epidemiologist will board the ship in Baltimore, MD on April 12, 2014 to conduct an epidemiologic investigation, environmental health assessment, and evaluate the outbreak and response activities. Specimens are being collected and will be sent to the CDC lab for testing.