Norovirus Outbreak on Celebrity Cruise Ship Causes Nearly 100 Passengers to Become Sick
On January 3, the Celebrity Constellation and its 2,056 passengers departed on a nine-night cruise. By the end of the cruise on January 12, 100 passengers — 92 guests and eight crew — had reported being sick, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). This marks the first norovirus outbreak on a cruise ship in 2024. Norovirus, also known as the stomach flu is one of the most common illnesses on cruise ships. Symptoms include: vomiting, diarrhea, nausea, and stomach pain.
According to the CDC, three of the 13 norovirus outbreaks aboard cruise ships in 2023 were on Celebrity cruise ships. This includes an outbreak in May 2023 that infected almost 200 passengers onboard the Celebrity Summit.
Whenever an illness, such as norovirus, strikes on a ship, cruise staff are required to implement sanitation procedures. If the illness is reported while the vessel is at sea, depending on the sickness involved, the ill passengers are often quarantined to prevent it from spreading while being treated by the ship’s medical staff .
We believe that the majority of cruise ship-related accidents and illnesses can be avoided.
Common Types of Illnesses Caused by Cruise Line Negligence:
- Norovirus;
- Food poisoning; and
- Legionnaire’s Disease.
The level of liability that falls upon the cruise line depends on how serious the illnesses are, as well as the circumstances through which the illness was contracted. We believe that the majority of cruise ship-related accidents and illnesses can be avoided.
What Is Norovirus?
Norovirus is more commonly known as the stomach flu. This illness involves nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, fever, and abdominal cramps. It is definitely not the type of illness someone wants to contract while confined to a boat out at sea. Norovirus is extremely contagious and can spread from physical contact with someone who has the illness or by touching something that someone who had the illness touched. It can also spread by contaminated food or water. Therefore, if a cruise ship employee had the norovirus and spread this illness through food he or she handled or prepared, the cruise line could be held liable.
What Is Food Poisoning?
Food poisoning is actually quite common when it comes to any type of industry where food is being prepared and served. If a sanitary violation occurred by one of the ship’s personnel when preparing food for passengers on the ship, it is possible that the cruise could be held liable for food poisoning illnesses contracted by passengers on board.
What Is Legionnaires’ disease?
The previous two illnesses are serious by all means, but Legionnaires’ disease is an extremely devastating health condition. The disease has a fatality rate of around 15 percent, and even if someone does survive after contracting the disease, getting back to “normal” can take years. Legionnaires’ disease actually comes from a bacterium, specifically the Legionella bacterium. It is commonly found in warm water, like in hot tubs, but it also can grow in larger, more complex heating and plumbing systems found in hotels, cruise ships, or office buildings. The bacterium is killed by hot water. An outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease is serious, and it can be caused by cruise ship negligence, such as when the ship does not heat the pools or hot tubs on board sufficiently enough to kill the bacterium.
We recommend that before you book your cruise, that you visit the CDC’s website where you can research different cruise ships to see how they performed in their last inspection. Ships are graded on a 100 point scale. Points are deducted whenever a safety violation is found. Certain violations are easily fixed immediately, often during the actual inspection. Other more complicated issues may take longer to correct. These random inspections verify that ships are maintaining a healthy and safe environment on board. If you are about to take a cruise, we urge you to review your ship’s annual inspection report.
Related Resources:
Tips for Healthy Cruises Provided by the CDC – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (December 27, 2022)
