Norovirus Outbreaks

One of the worst mass-passenger health related issues is a Noro-virus outbreak on a ship. This is a term used to cover a wide spectrum of gastrointestinal viruses that occur not only on cruise ships but in the general public realm as well. The reason these are so bad when they occur on ships is that you have a closed audience of passengers and crew together for a number of days, so if the illness spreads, it can spread quickly and multiply. 

People on vacation don’t want to get sick and often if they know being sick could hold them back from enjoying vacation may hesitate to admit they are sick. That can be one of the biggest issues unto itself. Not reporting or taking appropriate steps to isolate oneself from the rest of the crowd tends to lead to quicker and wider spread exposure of others.  Once folks get sick they need to be totally well and even then usually stay away from others for an additional 24 hours to help cull the spread of the virus.

Ships tend to operate with cleanliness at the forefront of their operating plan. Watch them deal with an outbreak and you will see cleaning taken to an even greater level with almost hourly wipe downs of the handrails on the stairs and areas outside of cabins where folks are sick are even fumigated. (I personally saw that happen last evening several cabins down from where I am staying.)

Those with gastrointestinal illness symptoms should report to the infirmary for a check-out by the ship’s doctor. Generally the cruise line does not charge for those check-out visits and where the illness is present often the treatment provided is also provided by the cruise line at no cost. Those found to be sick do end up in quarantine which can be unpleasant but then those who have the illness generally aren’t that keen on doing much anyhow.  

Norovirus is something you can encounter anywhere. It does more often occur on land, but that is in part because more folks are on land. Also, people and companies are often more lax in cleanliness on land than the cruise lines are. If you are on a ship where an outbreak takes place be sure to wash your hands as often as you can and especially after using the bathroom and before eating.