A small Alaska cruise ship keeps running into the same big problem: people getting sick. The National Geographic Sea Bird has logged its third gastrointestinal outbreak since late May, according to a new report from the CDC's Vessel Sanitation Program. The latest cluster emerged July 12, midway through a five-day trip between Sitka and Juneau, with 18 of the 62 passengers reporting symptoms including vomiting and abdominal cramps, Fox News reports. Crew members isolated ill passengers and stepped up cleaning and disinfection under the ship's outbreak plan.
The CDC says it is remotely reviewing the response and sanitation procedures. The exact cause hasn't been identified. Stool and vomit samples are pending lab results, though norovirus is a frequent culprit in cruise-related stomach outbreaks, and USA Today reports that it caused the outbreaks on the ship in May and June. Lindblad Expeditions, which operates the 152-foot vessel, and National Geographic Expeditions did not immediately comment.
- The CDC told USA Today that norovirus is behind more than 90% of cruise ship gastrointestinal outbreaks with a confirmed cause. "People joining the cruise ship may bring the virus to other passengers and crew," the agency said. "Characteristics of norovirus that facilitate outbreaks include a low infective dose, easy person-to-person transmissibility, prolonged viral shedding, absence of long-term immunity, the ability of the virus to survive routine cleaning procedures, and the absence of a vaccine."
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