Cruise ships hit by virus
17 January 2003 by Christina Golding
Four cruise ships in the USA have been hit by a virus within the past three weeks.
Nearly 1,000 passengers and crew members fell ill and three Caribbean cruises were disrupted while ships were cleaned and samples taken.
Evidence of the Norwalk-like virus, a gastrointestinal bug which is spread through person-to-person contact, has been found on Disney Cruise Line's ship Magic and Holland America's Amsterdam. Laboratory tests are pending on Carnival Cruise Lines' Fascination and P&O Cruises' Oceana.
