The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that more than 300 individuals became ill while on board a cruise ship sailing from Texas to Mexico.
According to the CDC, at least 284 of the 2,881 guests and 34 of the 1,159 crew members became ill with vomiting and diarrhea aboard the Princess Cruises ship between February 26 and March 5, according to Xinhua.
The CDC is still trying to figure out what caused the widespread illness.
In response to the incident, the cruise line gathered stool specimens from patients of gastrointestinal illness to transmit to the CDC lab for pathogenic diagnosis.
The CDC dispatched a team of epidemiologists to investigate the suspected virus that ravaged the Ruby Princess when it docked in Galveston, Texas, on March 5.
The illness was most likely caused by norovirus, a highly contagious virus that causes vomiting and diarrhea.
According to the CDC, norovirus, also known as the “cruise ship virus,” is responsible for more than 90% of diarrheic illness outbreaks on cruise liners.
According to the firm, the Ruby Princess has since departed on a new cruise.
The latest batch of travelers, who are presently on a seven-day Caribbean cruise, were informed about the prior trip’s elevated illness rate.
The Ruby Princess had already made news as the location of many Covid-19 outbreaks, including a 2020 trip that stopped in Australia early in the coronavirus pandemic, with hundreds of positive cases on board.
