152 Cruise Ship Passengers Impacted by Norovirus

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently reported 152 of 2,144 (7.09%) people were sickened with norovirus during the Celebrity Cruises Summit cruise to Bermuda between May 15–May 25, 2023.

Twenty-five crew members also reported being ill during the voyage.

Norovirus is a very contagious virus that causes vomiting and diarrhea. Anyone can get infected and sick with norovirus, says the CDC.

As of May 31, 2023, Celebrity Cruises reported the following actions:

• Increased cleaning and disinfection procedures according to the ship’s outbreak prevention and response plan.
• Notified current guests of the situation onboard and encouraged illness reporting and good hand hygiene.
• Collected and sent stool specimens from gastrointestinal illness cases to the CDC laboratory.
• Provided twice daily reports of gastrointestinal illness cases to VSP during the outbreak investigation.
• Consulted with VSP about sanitation cleaning procedures and reporting ill cases.
• Notified embarking guests of the situation onboard and encouraged illness reporting and good hand hygiene.

Throughout 2023, the CDC has reported ten other norovirus outbreaks on cruise ships.

As of June 7, 2023, there are norovirus vaccine candidates conducting clinical studies.