Royal Caribbean Cruise to end early; more than 600 sick

 

The Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship Explorer of the Seas will return to New Jersey two days early after more than 600 people were sickened by a fast-moving gut bug that spiked over the weekend.

At least 564 passengers and 47 crew members have reported symptoms of a possible norovirus outbreak since the 10-day cruise to the U.S. Virgin Islands launched on Tuesday, an official with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Sunday Jan 26,2014

Norovirus is the most common cause of acute gastroenteritis in the U.S., resulting in about 21 million illnesses, between 56,000 and 71,000 hospitalizations and as many as 800 deaths

The Explorer of the Seas is carrying 3,050 passengers and 1,165 crew members

The cruise departed Tuesday Jan 21,2014 from Cape Liberty, N.J., with plans for stops in San Juan, Puerto Rico, St. Thomas and St. Maarten.  The 10-day Royal Caribbean cruise ship will return two days early (was expected to dock in New Jersey on Wednesday Jan29,2014)

After returning to its home port on Wednesday, the cruise line said it would perform a "thorough 'barrier' sanitization program on the entire ship to make certain that any remaining traces of the illness are eliminated."