81 passengers suffer ‘gastrointestinal illness’ aboard Holland America cruise

Nearly 90 people aboard a Holland America cruise liner based in Florida suffered “symptoms of gastrointestinal illness” from a norovirus outbreak, forcing a “comprehensive sanitization of the ship,” officials said Sunday.

The Rotterdam had pushed out of Fort Lauderdale on Dec. 28 before returning on Friday, ending a journey that sickened 81 of the ship’s 2,593 passengers and eight members of the 1,005 crew, Holland America and CDC said.

“During its previous voyage, a number of guests onboard Rotterdam reported symptoms of gastrointestinal illness. The cases were mostly mild and quickly resolved,” according to the cruise line’s statement.

“The health of our guests and crew is a top priority and consistent with CDC protocols, we conducted a comprehensive sanitization of the ship when the cruise ended Friday in Fort Lauderdale.”

The norovirus outbreak had predominant symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea, according to the CDC.

The crew collected stool specimens and isolated ill passengers and crew, the CDC said.

This is the second norovirus outbreak aboard the same ship, the Rotterdam, within 11 months.

Days after pushing off out of Fort Lauderdale on Feb. 2, 169 people were reported ill on board.