Hundreds rushed off Norwegian Joy cruise ship as sick passengers hospitalised in ‘norovirus outbreak’ – The Sun

November 25, 2019

A NORWEGIAN Cruise Line ship has docked in Los Angeles as several people were hospitalized amid a suspected norovirus outbreak.

The ship, named Norwegian Joy, docked in San Pedro at 9.17am on Sunday and paramedics and firefighters were dispatched.

Accordingly to reports, one passenger claimed the ship had been dealing with a norovirus outbreak in recent days.

Six people were reportedly treated at the scene, of which four were taken to hospital.

The ship, which had travelled through parts of Columbia, the Mexican Riviera and Guatemala, had been sailing for 16 days before it docked.

Daniel Curry, a battalion chief for the Los Angeles Fire Department, told CBSN Los Angeles that firefighters were initially called about one patient who had fallen ill.

Referring to the patients, Curry added: "They were in fair condition, nobody in immediate need, but they were sick and they needed to be transported."

The battalion chief said that its thought around 2,000 to 3,000 people were on board the ship, which was built in 2017 and can hold up to 3,800 guests and 1,800 crew members.

Peter Krajewski, who was on board, tweeted: "Just got off the Norwegian Joy in the port of Los Angeles. Our ship had been dealing with a Norovirus outbreak the last couple days, but none of the passengers suspected that it was as bad as it was.

"Apparently hundreds of people were acutely ill on the ship."

Krajewski added that sick passengers coming off the ship were being screened separately.

Norwegian Cruise Lines said in a statement: "The safety, security and well-being of our guests and crew is our number one priority.

"As such, we operate at the very highest public health standards.

"During Norwegian Joy’s Panama Canal sailing, a few guests onboard experienced a stomach-related illness.

"To mitigate any impact of this rare occurrence, we implemented stringent sanitation procedures. As always, we will continue to monitor this situation."