French authorities have confined more than 1,700 passengers and crew members to a cruise ship docked in Bordeaux after a suspected norovirus outbreak, officials have said. The vessel, Ambition, is carrying 1,233 passengers, most of them British or Irish nationals, and arrived in Bordeaux on Tuesday. About 50 people have shown symptoms of the virus.
A 92-year-old passenger died on the cruise on Sunday. However, the operator, Ambassador Cruise Line, said the guest did not report any symptoms of gastrointestinal illness and the cause of death has yet to be established, pending a coroner’s full report.
Ambassador confirmed there were 48 active gastrointestinal illness cases among the passengers and one among the crew on the vessel, which was on a 14-night cruise. It also said French shore authorities had instructed guests and crew members to remain onboard. The ship departed Belfast on Friday and Liverpool on Saturday, with figures showing an increase in cases after the embarkation of guests in Liverpool.
A statement from the company said: “We would like to reassure guests that we take any illnesses aboard our fleet extremely seriously. Enhanced sanitation and prevention protocols were immediately implemented across the ship in line with established public health procedures following the initial reports of illness.” The statement said medical consultations regarding gastrointestinal illness were being provided free of charge.
The authorities in Bordeaux requested a routine review of the ship’s health status and records, and a specialist medical team and sanitation consultants have been dispatched to the vessel. The team collected existing samples for laboratory testing at Bordeaux University hospital, with results requiring a minimum of six hours to be processed. “Once clearance is granted, guests will be permitted to disembark,” the operator said.
