Norovirus Food Poisoning Hits Royal Caribbean Radiance of the Seas Cruise

About 150 passengers and at least three crew members aboard the Royal Caribbean Radiance of the Seas cruise ship are believed to have contracted food poisoning that was likely caused by norovirus. 

The Radiance of the Seas cruise ship and its 2,300 passengers returned to port in Tampa, Florida on January 8 after a 5-day cruise to Cozumel and Puerto Maya in Mexico. As the illnesses swept through the ship, the passengers were warned not to touch menus and silverware.

Royal Caribbean officials said that the illnesses were short-lived and that people who fell ill responded well to over-the-counter medications given out onboard. The ship was sanitized before heading out on another cruise later that evening.

Symptoms of gastroenteritis from norovirus in humans can include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach cramping and sometimes low-grade fevers, chills, headaches, muscle aches and tiredness. The symptoms hit suddenly, and last for about several days. Death is uncommon.

Norovirus is extremely contagious, and is found in the stool and vomit of infected people. It is most often spread through unsanitary food preparation.

Officials have not confirmed that norovirus was the cause of the illness on the Radiance of the Seas.

Last year, norovirus outbreaks are believed to have killed three people and sickened 44 others in Central State Hospital in Louisiana, and also led to an oyster recall after an outbreak in Louisiana and Mississippi sickened at least 11 people.

Photo Courtesy of Loyalty4life via Wikimedia Commons from public domain