Cruise bug hits hundreds

[dArKeR]

Athens - Some 450 British tourists on a cruise ship plying the Mediterranean have been struck by a highly contagious stomach virus, which has sent officials in their next port of call in Greece scrambling to contain the outbreak.

The ship, carrying 1 900 British passengers and 800 crew members, is expected to dock in the port of Piraeus near Athens on Friday, the Greek health ministry said.

http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_1438323,00.html

I think something is fishy with these cruise ship sicknesses. Why don't you see this in other places where people are grouped together? Hotels, planes, Club Med, schools, spa facilities, restaurants...

[bicentennial_baby]

1. Bad water

Think about it, at sea for an extended period of time, all potable water stored on the ship. All it takes is some bad sanitary practices and poor water quality monitoring, and Norwalk virus runs wild throughout the ship.

[dArKeR]

3. I think everyone drinks bottled water but cooking water comes from the

tank. (shower too). And they know they could have a problem so it's probably got so many types of chemical additives that nothing is alive in the water.

So you mean all of the millions of water facilities around the world are cleaner/better than a ships water processing?

Yes you're on a ship but there's actually a lot of space and fresh air blowing in. It's no where are near crowded as 80% of the way people live in the world.

And as Maple says, cruise ships have been around for 60 years.

I think something is strange.

[Resistance Is Futile]

5. Water supplies at sea

Only the smallest of craft can store potable water for an extended voyage. Like most ships, cruise ships make their own water from seawater. Not all potable water plants are capable of dealing with seawater contaminated with bacteria so a common cause for contaminated water is a ship drawing in sewage-contaminated seawater. Cruise ships are much more prone to drawing in sewage as they are usually fairly close to land.

[Maple]

2. It's only happened

in the last few years.

Passenger ships have been around for eons tho.

[DUreader]

4. The Price of Water has also Dramatically Increased Over Past Few Years

I suspect fraud, combined with poor monitoring/cost cutting cruise expenses

[Resistance Is Futile]

6. Not particularly relevant

Ships make their own water. The only costs involved are for the fixed infrastructure (low-pressure evaporators or reverse osmosis units).

[DoYouEverWonder]

8. I think they used to call it

sea sickness.

Yes, ships have been around for eons and lots of people have gotten sick on them for eons. In the old days crossing the Atlantic was often a fatal experience.

Besides, ships are great environments for molds, mildews and germs to grow and thrive. Lots of dark, moist places to hang out in. Plus you've got a captive audience to help spread everything around once something develops.

[Fovea]

11. If interested

Google Genoa and Black Death -- a ship borne illness killed a third of Europe in the 14th C.

[slackmaster]

7. I think this story is underreported

One of my coworkers came down with Norwalk virus a month ago while on a cruise ship. The crew took great pains to make sure that less than a certain number of people - some kind of threshold of reportability - were logged as sick.

When the ship pulled into a Florida port they hustled everyone off and hastily drained the fresh water tanks (a very unusual move).

[WindRavenX]

9. It seems like it's happening a LOT

During the summer, I remember reading tons and tons of stories about this virus striking dozens of cruises; which to me seems far more than normal.
People have been discussing the possibility of the virus coming from the water- is that the only possible explaination? It just seems...very odd to me.

[Resistance Is Futile]

10. Water-borne illnesses

It would be interesting to have a count of incidents broken down by the type of fresh water plant installed on the ships in question. LP evap plants can pass viruses as they don't sterilize water. If the crews aren't following safe operating practices (for instance, by making water when close to shore) or the ships are uptaking their own sewage (this should never happen) then it's certainly possible for the passengers and crew to get sick en masse.