CDC Monitors Norovirus Outbreak on Caribbean Princess Cruise Ship

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is monitoring a norovirus outbreak on a Princess Cruises ship that left Fort Lauderdale more than a week ago.

The agency's report states the outbreak occurred on the Caribbean Princess, which departed Port Everglades on April 28. CruiseMapper data shows the ship is on a 13-day Caribbean voyage with stops in the Bahamas, Netherlands Antilles, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic. It will dock at Port Canaveral in Orlando on May 11 to end the one-way trip.

According to the CDC, 102 of the ship's 3,116 passengers and 13 of its 1,131 crew members reported illness. Symptoms included diarrhea and vomiting. Princess Cruises has ramped up cleaning and disinfection, collected specimens for testing, isolated sick passengers and crew, and consulted the agency's Vessel Sanitation Program on cleaning procedures and case reporting.

The VSP is conducting a field response for an environmental assessment and outbreak investigation to help control it. The outbreak was reported on May 7.

This incident follows another norovirus outbreak on a Princess ship more than a month earlier. In March, the Star Princess had more than 104 guests and 49 crew members fall ill. That vessel also departed Fort Lauderdale for Caribbean stops in Honduras, Belize, and the Mexican Riviera before returning to Port Everglades. The outbreak there was reported while the ship sailed from Belize City to Cozumel.

Norovirus outbreaks occur frequently on cruise ships, particularly those run by major lines. In early January, the CDC reported an outbreak on a Holland America ship that sickened more than 80 people after it left Fort Lauderdale at the end of December.