Gastro bug forces Oasis of the Seas to cut short its Caribbean cruise
Royal Caribbean Cruises has cut short a sailing of Oasis of the Seas after almost 300 people complained they were suffereing from gastrointestinal symptoms.
Yesterday, the cruise line said the number taken ill stood at 167, with cases reported since Sunday.
But the ship has now returned to Florida a day early after the number suffering from the sickness bug rose to 277.
Royal Caribbean spokesman Owen Torres said: "We think the right thing to do is get everyone home early rather than have guests worry about their health."
Although no consolation to those currently suffering, the number of cases of shipboard gastrointestinal outbreaks is on the decline, and was significantly down in 2018 compared to the previous year.
Last year just 547 cases were recorded on 10 cruises by the CDC’s Vessel Sanitation Program.
An outbreak is classified when at least 3% of passengers and crew fall ill.
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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