Investigation Update on the Sea Princess

Cruise Line: Princess Cruises

Cruise Ship: Sea Princess

Voyage Dates: 05/20 - 30/2011

Number of passengers who have reported being ill during the voyage out of total number of passengers onboard: 128 of 2053 (6.23%)

Number of ill crew who have reported being ill during the voyage out of total number of crew onboard: 13 of 838 (1.55%)

Predominant symptoms: vomiting, diarrhea

Causative agent: Norovirus

Actions: In response to the outbreak, Princess Cruises and the crew aboard the ship have taken the following actions:

• Increased cleaning and disinfection procedures according to their outbreak prevention and response plan,
• Made announcements to both notify passengers and encourage case reporting,
• Conducted red level cleaning and delayed embarkation to permit a thorough disinfection,
• Collected stool specimens from ill passengers and crew for submission to the Health Canada lab,
• Distributed a pre-boarding health advisory to incoming passengers,
• Made daily reports of gastrointestinal illness cases to the VSP,
• Princess Cruises on their extended turnaround day in San Francisco, CA on May 30, 2011, conducted a red level cleaning and embarkation has been delayed to permit a thorough disinfection, and
• A pre-boarding health advisory was distributed to incoming passengers .

Two CDC Vessel Sanitation Program environmental health officers boarded the ship on arrival in Juneau, AK on May 24, 2011 to conduct a limited, targeted environmental health assessment and evaluated the outbreak and response activities.

The Health Canada lab confirmed all specimens were positive for Norovirus, genotype II. Two Health Canada Travelling Public and Conveyance Inspection Programme’s Environmental Health Officers conducted an environmental health evaluation on May 28, 2011 in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.