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https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/on ... s-n1136436

As one Princess cruise is quarantined for COVID-19, another is hit with different illness
The Caribbean Princess ship came back to Florida early after 345 passengers and 26 crew members fell ill with symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea.
Feb. 13, 2020, 3:18 PM MST
By Elisha Fieldstadt
A Princess cruise ship returned early to the Port of Everglades in Florida on Thursday due to hundreds of passengers and crew becoming afflicted with a gastrointestinal illness.

The sickness among those aboard the Caribbean Princess came as another of the cruise line's ships, the Diamond Princess, remains quarantined off Japan with more than 200 people on board sickened with COVID-19, a disease caused by coronavirus.

The Caribbean Princess departed Fort Lauderdale on Feb. 2 and was due to return on Feb. 16, but came back three days early after 345 passengers and 26 crew members fell ill, with symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 4,200 people were on board.

The ship was denied entry during its voyage to at least one port, Trinidad and Tobago, over health concerns, NBC South Florida reported.

The cause of the outbreak is unknown, according to the CDC.


The ship will undergo a "super sanitation cleaning," and a team with the the CDC's Vessel Sanitation Program met the ship at port to investigate the outbreak. The Caribbean Princess will resume its regular schedule and depart on its next cruise on Feb. 16, the CDC reported.

A statement from Princess Cruises said the trip was cut short "out of an abundance of caution due to guests reporting symptoms consistent with a mild case of gastrointestinal illness."

"This is a highly unusual development and we share the disappointment of our guests," the statement said. Passengers will receive a 50 percent refund for the cruise to use toward a future Princess cruise.

No cases of COVID-19 were identified on the Caribbean Princess, the Princess Cruises statement noted.

The cruise line confirmed Thursday that 44 more people aboard the Diamond Princess, quarantined in Japan, were confirmed to have COVID-19, bringing the total number to 218, Japan’s Health Ministry said Thursday local time.

That ship is scheduled to be quarantined until Feb. 19.

There have been no deaths from COVID-19 on the cruise ship.

The disease has killed more than 1,300 people in mainland China as of Thursday morning local time, according to Chinese authorities.

PP

They don't call them 'floating Petri dishes' for nothing.

I can think of nothing worse than being trapped on some cruise liner with sundry odious people, with or without the virus du jour!

We usually find out own space. We generally avoid sharing tables. We shared a table on one cruise with Mr Peacock and Mrs Slocum I kid you not. They had both worked for Al Fayad in Harrods, he in gents outfitting and she lingerie. One other couple were quite introverted until my wife started talking about his medals. On another cruise one man was particularly objectionable. The best however was a Kent couple. He was a lorry driver and hugely entertaining, I would rate his job at least as testing as pilot. His wife was about 5 years older, early 60s but a stunner.

I can think of nothing worse than being trapped on some cruise liner with sundry odious people, with or without the virus du jour!

Here ! Here ! I'm currently trying to dissuade Mrs. Exs from spending a small fortune ( in our money ) on a cruise. Maybe not just sundry people, some 3,500 of them !

I can think of nothing worse than being trapped on some cruise liner with sundry odious people

.. and you call me curmudgeonly!

In fact, I agree, but the odious people are a tiny minority and are easily avoided. There are always places to get away, libraries, little corners, on deck, bars, or of course the cabin is a retreat too. We've been on several cruises and have enjoyed them immensely. I was initially put off by the thought of having to share a dinner table with random strangers but there are plenty of other options if you wish, and so many things to do, from classical music to bingo, quizzes to lectures, various courses, meetings for 'friends of Dorothy' and 'friends of Bill W' (who knows what that means? I didn't, but then I don't fall into either category).

I also enjoy standing on deck gazing out at the open sea or distant land. A lovely way to spend a holiday and far more pleasant than being trapped in a steel tube breathing other people's recycled farts at 39,000 feet. And if you are stuck next to an odious person on an aircraft it's difficult to get away.

We took the QE back from CPT the year before last, it cost only marginally more than a business class air ticket, for which we got a balcony cabin, 12 nights comfortable accommodation, as many meals a day as we wanted, and all the entertainment.

JuniorWoody thinks that if we do go on a cruise it should be a Disney one, now way am I doing this , just about survived DisneyWorld( twice)

JuniorWoody thinks that if we do go on a cruise it should be a Disney one

I would rather have root canal surgery. At least it's over quickly and you have a comfortable chair to recline on.

As far as my own personal experience goes the most efficient germ warfare factory is a child pre-school. In the US where it is almost necessary that both parents work pre-schools are extremely common. Little Jimmy arrives with a bug which he passes to his 20 or so schoolmates who then pass this on to their parents and siblings who then pass the bug on to their schoolmates and co-workers - soon the whole darn community is down with the problem. We lose dozens of work-days a year from people who pick up pre-school bugs from their children.

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In closed communities you soon get a communal immunity. There was a time when measles parties were common.

A good example of herd immunity was in the WOC (Ops Bunker) at Coningsby. The was 100% filtered air as the building was entered via air locks. Without exception a new arrival would go down with a cold and other nasties.

While working at an office in Leeds, we had a 'Hero' who came in with flu, within the week the office was empty, and the company had to move guys down from Newcastle to cover the work.

Regarding cruise ships, Mrs PN has been researching various travel industry approaches to antiviral measures. She believes that the cruise companies are the only ones with a good handle on it. It could be because going on a cruise is entirely optional and any outbreak will have an immediate impact on their bottom line. The aviation industry knows its market is much less affected as many people need to travel.

I asked the question at TOP what measures are taken at Airports, especially LHR? Any screening should be as early as possible in the process.

Just had a reply on TOP - Frankfurt - at the gate 'have you been to China in last two week '. Apparently it is an optional question.

I will admit to travelling home to the UK from the US about this time back in 2008 while recovering from the 'flu. I must have been over the worst of it because I was able to move, but I remember going into work the following day, then going to the doctor that afternoon who told me not to go to work for the rest of the week.

At one employer (in the 1980s) the MD was insistent that those with the lurgi were not allowed on the premises.

G-CPTN wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 14, 2020 5:47 pm

At one employer (in the 1980s) the MD was insistent that those with the lurgi were not allowed on the premises.

And not just any lurgi, it had to be the dreaded lurgi no less. Normally associated with bad attack of the knees.

boing wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 14, 2020 4:30 pm

As far as my own personal experience goes the most efficient germ warfare factory is a child pre-school. In the US where it is almost necessary that both parents work pre-schools are extremely common. Little Jimmy arrives with a bug which he passes to his 20 or so schoolmates who then pass this on to their parents and siblings who then pass the bug on to their schoolmates and co-workers - soon the whole darn community is down with the problem. We lose dozens of work-days a year from people who pick up pre-school bugs from their children.

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So true. Mrs Hydro was a pre-school teacher. Pre-school teachers never get sick - they are immune to everything.

UK currently has a massive outbreak of Mumps. 5,000 last year, 550 this January.

Pontius Navigator wrote: ↑

Sat Feb 15, 2020 8:59 am

UK currently has a massive outbreak of Mumps. 5,000 last year, 550 this January.

I got mumps after I was 40!

Not nice.

I was lucky, had the MMR for real as a small child before they made it a vaccine. Had to have an MMR jab as part of US visa requirements, the nurse warned of all the possible symptoms but I guess my immune system just laughed and took it all out without needing to tell me it was doing it.