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On Independence of the Seas - Norovirus & No Limes!

Lady_Gamecock
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Lady_Gamecock

Lady_Gamecock

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I am presently in a traffic jam in San Juan (on my way to Bacardi) and just thought that I would drop a line to all....

 

First and foremost: No Limes anywhere. There is some type of lime shortage out of Mexico, so those of you who love limes in drinkies - No joy!

 

Secondly, Norovirus is running rampant on the boat. Our group of 8 has been lucky thus far; however, rooms around us all have Biohazard Bags.....

 

Questions?

Comments? I'll check back!

 

Lady_G

 

 

N

 

 

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Stephluva2711

Stephluva2711

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What do you mean by Biohazard bags? What do they look like? Good luck, stay safe and wash your hands! :rolleyes:

 

I hear when the quarantine you to your room you can only order certain things from room service, and then all your cutlery and plates etc go in the bio hazard bags! :eek:

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Lady_Gamecock

Lady_Gamecock

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Sorry for the late response.....

 

First off, RCCL did a great job with the huge Noro outbreak aboard ship; the Windjammer and Room Service were a different story.... But in defense of the ship, they had A LOT going on and had to reach out to everyone (Every member of the crew, including the Captain, was handing out food so Pax weren't touching it.)

 

This strain thankfully we did not get! We had 8 in our party, ages ranging from three to 87. We did find out the magnets above the doors defined who had Noro, and how in the room were affected.

 

Yes, Biohazard Bags are bags with special handling, normally medical waste. They're red and well marked. Also, saw men in Biohazard Suits cleaning and fogging rooms and hallways.

 

The lack of limes nearly killed me! It's amazing how many drinks and recipes call for that wonderful little fruit!

 

Let me know if you have questions!

Lady_G.

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chengkp75

chengkp75

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All waste from quarantined cabins will be incinerated separately from other trash. Dishes and cutlery, if not paper/plastic, will be sanitized and then washed. All laundry will be handled separately, going into the medical washing machine where the water temperatures are kept much higher and different sanitizing products are used.

 

Most of the Virkon fogging is done late at night, so you don't see it. This is the most effective method for sanitizing both hard and soft surfaces. Once the occupants disembark, the cabin and mattress will be fogged as well.

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Nikmav

Nikmav

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I was on Indy this past week as well. Can't comment on the limes as I didn't need them.

 

However, don't mean to step on any toes Lady Gamecock, but the outbreak was not "huge". There were less than 75 recorded cases of it on the ship. The crew monitored it and took immediate action and instituted the increased sanitation measures that helped keep it at bay. The efforts were great! I'm happy that our family of 5 were healthy the entire trip.

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cruising_knc

cruising_knc

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I was on Indy this past week as well. Can't comment on the limes as I didn't need them.

 

However, don't mean to step on any toes Lady Gamecock, but the outbreak was not "huge". There were less than 75 recorded cases of it on the ship. The crew monitored it and took immediate action and instituted the increased sanitation measures that helped keep it at bay. The efforts were great! I'm happy that our family of 5 were healthy the entire trip.

 

I was also on this sailing. My daughter is an epidemiologist who was very interested in the updates so I paid fairly close attention.

 

I agree the crew did a great job of containing the virus. I hadn't heard that there were less than 75 recorded cases. At one point I heard there were over 100. I don't think the Captain ever provided accumulative numbers in his updates.

 

I did hear that they were consulting with "public health authorities" which I take to mean the CDC and which they are required to do when more than 2% of the passengers/crew become ill. Since they delayed boarding for the next cruise after ours to do a deep cleaning I suspect our ship was at or above that 2% mark. Not huge but of concern. This was the first time I'd encountered the enhanced sanitation measures. Neither my husband nor I became ill and we appreciate the extra attention to cleanliness.

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Lady_Gamecock

Lady_Gamecock

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I was on Indy this past week as well. Can't comment on the limes as I didn't need them.

 

However, don't mean to step on any toes Lady Gamecock, but the outbreak was not "huge". There were less than 75 recorded cases of it on the ship. The crew monitored it and took immediate action and instituted the increased sanitation measures that helped keep it at bay. The efforts were great! I'm happy that our family of 5 were healthy the entire trip.

 

 

Touché, in our world of being uber sensitive regarding words, "huge" may have been the wrong word. My utmost apologies to Mr. Webster for the utilizing the wrong word and next time I will be more sensitive....

 

I found the limes situation to be more troublesome than the Noro!

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

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Caribbeansunrise

Caribbeansunrise

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.........I found the limes situation to be more troublesome than the Noro!

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

 

 

I have had norovirus twice but never from a cruise ship. Both times were land based. I've even been on a "Sick" ship with no problems. I have experieinced food poision from a well known chain resturant.

 

No limes would, however, be a problem for a margaretta drinker.

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prince1099

prince1099

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I am presently in a traffic jam in San Juan (on my way to Bacardi) and just thought that I would drop a line to all....

 

First and foremost: No Limes anywhere. There is some type of lime shortage out of Mexico, so those of you who love limes in drinkies - No joy!

 

Secondly, Norovirus is running rampant on the boat. Our group of 8 has been lucky thus far; however, rooms around us all have Biohazard Bags.....

 

Questions?

Comments? I'll check back!

 

Lady_G

 

 

N

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

Can you bring your own bag of Limes on board the Independence? Cruising May 4th.2014

Do they allow your own citrus fruits, or not?

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Mikew0805

Mikew0805

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Novovirus seems to be on most cruises that I read about in the past few weeks.

Seriously making me worried.

And I'm becoming very anxious about my cruise in feb

 

Why? It's not a cruise ship thing... this is in every school, hospital, churches or any place where people gather.

 

You cannot do anything about it if someone who is contaminated touches your food (unlikely) however you can choose to keep your hands and fingers out of your eyes, ears, nose, mouth. Also, wash them constantly... not with that crappy sanitizer either.. use simple soap and water. By doing so, you likely will not experience this GI illness.

 

Have a great cruise.

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Lilyrosemum

Lilyrosemum

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I was on Indy this past week as well. Can't comment on the limes as I didn't need them.

 

However, don't mean to step on any toes Lady Gamecock, but the outbreak was not "huge". There were less than 75 recorded cases of it on the ship. The crew monitored it and took immediate action and instituted the increased sanitation measures that helped keep it at bay. The efforts were great! I'm happy that our family of 5 were healthy the entire trip.

 

I agree. It is like any "town" of say 3,000-5,000 people. If 75-100 people are sick with a virus it is not exactly an epidemic.

 

But on the "positive" side for us frequent cruisers (3-4 weeks per year) prices do tend to drop with these Noro outbreaks.... so be my guests....do carry on...I will be checking my 4 cruises booked out over the next year for price drops, lol!

 

Be healthy everyone! My health issues are spring time allergy related....love the beautiful blooming floral stuff but misery to me. Fortunately it is not contagious.

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chengkp75

chengkp75

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Can you bring your own bag of Limes on board the Independence? Cruising May 4th.2014

Do they allow your own citrus fruits, or not?

 

Can you get away with it? Probably, unless security wants to know why those golf balls in your bag have two bumps on them. Is it allowed? No. Citrus fruit is considered a "potentially hazardous, ready to eat" food and must come from documented sources and be delivered in specific conditions, and handled in specific ways. So, even at a buck or so a lime, you only risk a few bucks if they take them.

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waterrats

waterrats

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The six of us survived without getting sick. Our cabin steward was MIA the last two days so we suspect he ended up sick. Out of 14 cabins on our deck 3 were infected. They mark the sick cabins with small 1 inch square magnets on the top edge of the doors. I have heard upwards of 400 sick but all numbers have been hearsay.

 

RCCL tried their hardest to keep everyone safe from sickness. I was served by a lighting technician one day. Painters were serving food as well. It was definitely a "All hands on deck" cruise for the staff. Hand sanitizers everywhere except near the elevators and stairs which I thought was weird.

 

Joe

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chengkp75

chengkp75

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The six of us survived without getting sick. Our cabin steward was MIA the last two days so we suspect he ended up sick. Out of 14 cabins on our deck 3 were infected. They mark the sick cabins with small 1 inch square magnets on the top edge of the doors. I have heard upwards of 400 sick but all numbers have been hearsay.

 

RCCL tried their hardest to keep everyone safe from sickness. I was served by a lighting technician one day. Painters were serving food as well. It was definitely a "All hands on deck" cruise for the staff. Hand sanitizers everywhere except near the elevators and stairs which I thought was weird.

 

Joe

 

Even at 400 ill, with a passenger and crew count of 5600+, that is still less than 1%, far below the 2% required to even trigger the first "special report" to CDC, let alone the 3% that triggers the "outbreak update" that is posted on the CDC website, so it may not even be reportable. Unfortunate for those who were ill, but by no means a major outbreak.

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