Norovirus on Anthem - admin?

[parrotfeathers]

I asked somewhere else but haven't seen an answer. What if. you are too ill to even get out of bed when time to disembark? Do they push you out in a wheel chair? What if you have an "emergency" during the time you are waiting for some type of transportation? How do you get to the plane or hotel? What happens to you??

[DD]

Nope... some people just do a better job of washing their hands when needed.

 

While I agree that washing your hands properly is the most important thing you can do to minimize your risk, if you get noro, it does NOT mean that you didn't do a good enough job washing your hands. Norovirus can become airborne, so even breathing in a room that someone has vomited in, as quickly as walking through that room, can cause you to have the virus, per the Department of Health. Maybe I misread your post, but it seemed to imply that people who do a better job of washing their hands don't get the norovirus, and those that do get it obviously didn't do as good of a job washing their hands. I'm hoping that's not what you meant.

 

https://www.doh.wa.gov/Portals/1/Documents/4400/332-083-Norovirus.pdf

[Irish13]

I too was in this cruise and was sickened with the Noro Virus.

Before we boarded there were people here on Cruise Critic posting that on the previous cruise that there was reports of an outbreak. I was trying to be very cautious to wash my hands and use sanitizer as much as possible but by day 4 it hit my and I was down. I am so very thankful that so far out of the 7 of us that went I was the only one to get it. But I can tell you I witnessed them spraying two times and in addition spraying the door knobs to our rooms almost every night. There were so many people throwing up so how they are saying only 98 people had it I find very hard to believe. I will tell you like the lady reported on the news there were hand sanitizing stations that were empty and restrooms out of soap but I know I reported it right away and went to a different location to clean my hands.

The cruise staff was very aware of the situation because I talked to several staff members who told me they were advised to stay clear of public areas as much as possible and not to eat from the public areas so they did not cross contaminate the food.

I am an avid cruiser and have never experienced anything like this before and yes I am very disappointed and upset that I missed two days of my vacation and spending time with my family but I do believe they were doing everything they could to stop the situation from getting worse.

In addition there were over 1,000 kids onboard this cruise ....

They also delayed the next boarding till 12pm so they could again do another deep cleaning.

To all that were affected I hope that you feel better soon I know my stomach is still a mess.

[mollyeilis]

Nope... some people just do a better job of washing their hands when needed.

 

Agreed.

 

Maybe I misread your post, but it seemed to imply that people who do a better job of washing their hands don't get the norovirus, and those that do get it obviously didn't do as good of a job washing their hands. I'm hoping that's not what you meant.

 

 

 

https://www.doh.wa.gov/Portals/1/Documents/4400/332-083-Norovirus.pdf

 

 

Well that’s what I mean. Not sure why you wound hope that’s not what Brillo said.

 

And what you gleaned is not actually what that link said. “Can” get something doesn’t mean “will” get something. It means at some point some guinea pig got something without touching things. Or people have said that they did and they can’t prove that the person touched things. It means they *can*, not that they *will*. And nothing is said about walking through the room quickly.

 

I’m sticking with the hand washing thing.

 

And I don’t know why anyone wound take any offense to that. There’s nothing insulting about it. It’s just the facts.

 

When my son and I got it at home due to our not-great hand-washing habits it didn’t hurt our feelings to realize that. It was what it was.

 

Wash your hands. Don’t eat finger foods like bread if you’ve touched any surface after you washed your hands. Stop the nail-biting habit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[Canadianmama3]

I too was in this cruise and was sickened with the Noro Virus.

Before we boarded there were people here on Cruise Critic posting that on the previous cruise that there was reports of an outbreak. I was trying to be very cautious to wash my hands and use sanitizer as much as possible but by day 4 it hit my and I was down. I am so very thankful that so far out of the 7 of us that went I was the only one to get it. But I can tell you I witnessed them spraying two times and in addition spraying the door knobs to our rooms almost every night. There were so many people throwing up so how they are saying only 98 people had it I find very hard to believe. I will tell you like the lady reported on the news there were hand sanitizing stations that were empty and restrooms out of soap but I know I reported it right away and went to a different location to clean my hands.

The cruise staff was very aware of the situation because I talked to several staff members who told me they were advised to stay clear of public areas as much as possible and not to eat from the public areas so they did not cross contaminate the food.

I am an avid cruiser and have never experienced anything like this before and yes I am very disappointed and upset that I missed two days of my vacation and spending time with my family but I do believe they were doing everything they could to stop the situation from getting worse.

In addition there were over 1,000 kids onboard this cruise ....

They also delayed the next boarding till 12pm so they could again do another deep cleaning.

To all that were affected I hope that you feel better soon I know my stomach is still a mess.

 

 

Unfortunately most hand sanitizers do nothing for noro. Only a couple kinds have shown to be somewhat effective, but the alcohol based ones do absolutely nothing as far as noro is concerned. Really people need to wash their hands with soap and water. But a lot think sanitizer will do the trick, and that just adds to the problems with it spreading.

 

I'm not sure what hand sanitizers they have on the ships?

 

 

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[JoyAnna]

Has anyone heard from people on the current sailing? I wonder if they are having a problem too. I am on the 11/25 sailing and plan to bring some supplies to make sure I do as much as possible to stay healthy!

[Maraprince]

I was on the 10/28 sailing where it seems things started. The last sea day of the sailing I was put in isolation in my cabin and received a letter from Guest Services that my TA would receive details of a future cruise credit for the missed day of the sailing. Let me tell you while it is a very nice gesture on RCL's part I would have preferred to not have gotten Noro at all. It took me 2 weeks after I returned home to get back to a "normal" state. Definitely not fun:(

 

My cousin who shared the cabin with me was not put into isolation since she wasn't as badly affected. However, after returning home it hit her:o

 

We washed our hands before leaving our cabin and then again before entering the WJ. After using the public bathrooms, we also washed our hands. No way to be on a ship without touching surfaces. No way of telling how much exposure you are getting either.

 

There will always be people who do not believe the rules apply to them regarding not filling their water bottles directly from the water spouts, touching and returning food to the buffet, etc.

 

Maybe passengers should be sprayed in the terminal before boarding the ship:halo: Who knows what the answer is! I only can tell you, any part of Noro is not fun.:(

 

MARAPRINCE

[DD]

Agreed.

 

 

 

 

Well that’s what I mean. Not sure why you wound hope that’s not what Brillo said.

 

And what you gleaned is not actually what that link said. “Can” get something doesn’t mean “will” get something. It means at some point some guinea pig got something without touching things. Or people have said that they did and they can’t prove that the person touched things. It means they *can*, not that they *will*. And nothing is said about walking through the room quickly.

 

I’m sticking with the hand washing thing.

 

And I don’t know why anyone wound take any offense to that. There’s nothing insulting about it. It’s just the facts.

 

When my son and I got it at home due to our not-great hand-washing habits it didn’t hurt our feelings to realize that. It was what it was.

 

Wash your hands. Don’t eat finger foods like bread if you’ve touched any surface after you washed your hands. Stop the nail-biting habit.

 

 

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It's insulting because you're implying that IF you get the norovirus it's ALWAYS YOUR OWN FAULT for not washing your hands correctly. That is not the only way people contract the norovirus. Having taught ServSafe food safety at a culinary school for years and certifying many restaurant managers in food safety, I'm quite familiar with procedures - the virus can be airborne once someone vomits; that's why you use specific chemicals to clean up vomit and why you wear PPE when doing so. Same idea with diarrhea.

 

I think when people are sick with the norovirus, the last thing they need is someone pointing fingers about how they obviously didn't wash their hands correctly. You can wash your hands perfectly and still get sick. This is not just a disease that people who don't wash their hands correctly get.

 

Also, the link, one of many, not just something I gleaned, stated, "Norovirus can become airborne, so being in or passing through a room in which an infected person has vomited can infect you simply by breathing." How else do you interpret "passing through a room" - it doesn't say linger, hang out, spend a lot of time. Passing through is just that.

[bumorgan]

For your information I am sick today and no I am not after a refund or even partial refund. I just want them to admit there was an issue and give me an idea how bad it was.

 

 

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Did you not get the letter in your cabin as we did last week stating there was a small outbreak?

[shellunderwater]

I asked somewhere else but haven't seen an answer. What if. you are too ill to even get out of bed when time to disembark? Do they push you out in a wheel chair? What if you have an "emergency" during the time you are waiting for some type of transportation? How do you get to the plane or hotel? What happens to you??

 

I can answer part of that question.

 

My DD experienced the physical manifestations of noro at lunch at BW3 in Tampa (Ybor) the day we disembarked from the Vision a few years back. Once she felt she was reasonable to leave the restroom, we hopped in the rental car and made a bee-line to the airport. As we approached, DD said that I needed to drive much faster or experience a rental car cleaning fee moment. I took her advice. At the moment I stopped at the airport, she made a bee-line for the restroom, once again experiencing the physical manifestations....

 

DD and DW stayed at the Marriott at Tampa airport, DS and I flew back home. DD was in NO condition to get on a plane, and you fellow travelers can thank us later for this choice. FYI, DW notified the hotel of our DD condition so they could have housekeeping complete a more thorough cleaning/disinfecting.

 

They ended up at the ER in Tampa to deal with the effects of the physical manifestations and get medicine so she could in fact get on the plane home the next day.

 

Trip insurance paid all the medical bills and additional expenses in Tampa (hotel, change fees, transportation) related to the illness.

 

And yes, in case you are wondering, I'm quite proud of the phrase "physical manifestations". ;p

[MaryL31]

Has anyone heard from people on the current sailing? I wonder if they are having a problem too. I am on the 11/25 sailing and plan to bring some supplies to make sure I do as much as possible to stay healthy!

 

I am on Anthem now. I am not aware of any issues. It seems that they may have backed off just a bit on the cleaning, but it is hard to tell. Hand rails in stateroom hallway were wet last night, as well as the handle to my cabin. Still seeing masked people walking around with buckets in the Windjammer. Still making you use the alcohol hand sanitizer, even after washing your hands as you enter the Windjammer.

[nascarcruiser]

Funny!

 

Did you see the family on our local news, channel 6, who was on the cruise, and it ruined their whole cruise. I understand their disappointment, but was it really necessary to go to channel 6?

If this is the same story I just read it said only 98 people were sick.

[Irish13]

We did receive that letter but I knew before then that there was an outbreak because like I said I saw people throwing up.

 

Did you not get the letter in your cabin as we did last week stating there was a small outbreak?

[Rileyz]

4 members of my family got noro at Disney World a few years back. We spent 2 days stuck in our room. It can happen anywhere crowds gather. It’s unfortunate yes, but people going to the news or trying to get a refund is ridiculous IMO.

[reallyitsmema]

I am on Anthem now. I am not aware of any issues. It seems that they may have backed off just a bit on the cleaning, but it is hard to tell. Hand rails in stateroom hallway were wet last night, as well as the handle to my cabin. Still seeing masked people walking around with buckets in the Windjammer. Still making you use the alcohol hand sanitizer, even after washing your hands as you enter the Windjammer.

 

I am also on anthem and there is still Noro. There was fogging today on deck 7 aft. The cabin next to us and the cabin 4 down from us had been quarantined and were released today.

 

As a person with breathing issues, I have been having a really hard time with all the chemicals in the air.

 

We just spoke to our cabin steward about the numbers and he said they are down but to be vigilant.

[KuffMUp]

For your information I am sick today and no I am not after a refund or even partial refund. I just want them to admit there was an issue and give me an idea how bad it was.

 

 

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Dear God. Customer Service in Miami probably has no clue. If you read these boards you can see all kinds of posts about how often they are wrong!

[Cyber Kat]

Nope... some people just do a better job of washing their hands when needed.

 

 

 

LOL you don’t know my sister. I’m the constant hand washer. Her? Not so much. [emoji15]

 

 

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[parrotfeathers]

Thank you! Yes, you really did a good job of describing the "emergency."

 

 

I can answer part of that question.

 

My DD experienced the physical manifestations of noro at lunch at BW3 in Tampa (Ybor) the day we disembarked from the Vision a few years back. Once she felt she was reasonable to leave the restroom, we hopped in the rental car and made a bee-line to the airport. As we approached, DD said that I needed to drive much faster or experience a rental car cleaning fee moment. I took her advice. At the moment I stopped at the airport, she made a bee-line for the restroom, once again experiencing the physical manifestations....

 

DD and DW stayed at the Marriott at Tampa airport, DS and I flew back home. DD was in NO condition to get on a plane, and you fellow travelers can thank us later for this choice. FYI, DW notified the hotel of our DD condition so they could have housekeeping complete a more thorough cleaning/disinfecting.

 

They ended up at the ER in Tampa to deal with the effects of the physical manifestations and get medicine so she could in fact get on the plane home the next day.

 

Trip insurance paid all the medical bills and additional expenses in Tampa (hotel, change fees, transportation) related to the illness.

 

And yes, in case you are wondering, I'm quite proud of the phrase "physical manifestations". ;p

[Cyber Kat]

Agreed.

 

 

 

 

Well that’s what I mean. Not sure why you wound hope that’s not what Brillo said.

 

And what you gleaned is not actually what that link said. “Can” get something doesn’t mean “will” get something. It means at some point some guinea pig got something without touching things. Or people have said that they did and they can’t prove that the person touched things. It means they *can*, not that they *will*. And nothing is said about walking through the room quickly.

 

I’m sticking with the hand washing thing.

 

And I don’t know why anyone wound take any offense to that. There’s nothing insulting about it. It’s just the facts.

 

When my son and I got it at home due to our not-great hand-washing habits it didn’t hurt our feelings to realize that. It was what it was.

 

Wash your hands. Don’t eat finger foods like bread if you’ve touched any surface after you washed your hands. Stop the nail-biting habit.

 

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It is an insult because it comes right out and says if you get sick you didn’t wash your hands. Sorry- that’s BS. Unless you spend the entire cruise in the bathroom washing your hands, there will be times when you are vulnerable.

 

I wash my hands a lot normally. On a ship, I increase the number of times and I carry Lysol or Clorox wipes in a zip lock bag around with me to use on handrails and the like. I still got sick.

 

And I have NEVER bit my nails. Stop being so high and mighty. It can happen to anyone.

 

 

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[KuffMUp]

I can answer part of that question.

 

My DD experienced the physical manifestations of noro at lunch at BW3 in Tampa (Ybor) the day we disembarked from the Vision a few years back. Once she felt she was reasonable to leave the restroom, we hopped in the rental car and made a bee-line to the airport. As we approached, DD said that I needed to drive much faster or experience a rental car cleaning fee moment. I took her advice. At the moment I stopped at the airport, she made a bee-line for the restroom, once again experiencing the physical manifestations....

 

DD and DW stayed at the Marriott at Tampa airport, DS and I flew back home. DD was in NO condition to get on a plane, and you fellow travelers can thank us later for this choice. FYI, DW notified the hotel of our DD condition so they could have housekeeping complete a more thorough cleaning/disinfecting.

 

They ended up at the ER in Tampa to deal with the effects of the physical manifestations and get medicine so she could in fact get on the plane home the next day.

 

Trip insurance paid all the medical bills and additional expenses in Tampa (hotel, change fees, transportation) related to the illness.

 

And yes, in case you are wondering, I'm quite proud of the phrase "physical manifestations". ;p

So for those wondering about how many cases, CDC lists more than 3% on their website. https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/vsp/surv/gilist.htm#2017

 

We went on a weekend trip out of town and I am certain I got Noro. I was diagnosed in the ER with Clostridium Dificile but am certain I was a silent carrier as vomiting isn't one of the symptoms. I was sicker than a dog. Never been so sick in my life. I really wanted to go to the ER but there was no way, logistically, to get there without being in an ambulance and leaving a mess for the crew to clean up.

 

However, all this talk about Noro is making me think about taking meds I got then with me to help lessen any problems I may encounter. Best thing is it is adults only so no little ones stuffing their finger in their nose and handling the buffet stuff. Now influenza I expect after travelling in a plane. I hope my flu shot has taken by the time I go (which is way closer than the cruise-ships ticker indicates - they are all off by quite a bit of time).

[MaryL31]

I am also on anthem and there is still Noro. There was fogging today on deck 7 aft. The cabin next to us and the cabin 4 down from us had been quarantined and were released today.

 

As a person with breathing issues, I have been having a really hard time with all the chemicals in the air.

 

We just spoke to our cabin steward about the numbers and he said they are down but to be vigilant.

 

Interesting. Are you on Deck 7? I am with 2 other couples, and our cabins are all in different areas of the ship. Haven't seen any issues like what you are describing. The severe asthmatic in our group hasn't had any trouble, either.

[Life is Good Cruising]

We're also onboard (Deck 13) and haven't seen any fogging going on or any post it notes on doors when they quarantine someone.

[starfish216]

We had four cabins on the 10/28-11/4 of the Anthem. Only one cabin received the noro virus letter the day we were disembarking, luckily no one got sick.

 

We always notice the crew wiping door knobs, hand rails and tables down. In fact they were doing a more thorough cleaning as we were disembarking, they had yellow tape across areas with a sign stating something to the effect of 'keep out area sanitized'.

 

 

But what I have never noticed in public areas in the back and seats of chairs being wiped down. No matter where you go if you plan on sitting your hands will be touching the back of the chair or the seat. I've seen tables and the edges of the buffet station being wiped down and even drinks in the Windjammer being handed to you but I have never seen when a table is being cleared off and wiped down the crew wiping the back and seats of the chairs down. That is where everyones hand are, you pull out a chair to sit etc.

 

 

What about all those loungers by the pool, have they even been sanitized? What about all the seating areas with fabric, how is that sanitized? I can see these areas causing any virus to spread quickly. Maybe these areas are sanitized in the wee hours of the morning, I don't know.

[kthom88]

Even on the 11/4 sailing we were with my sister who was in a different part of the ship and they never recieved the letter and I did. They had no clue what I was talking about.

[reallyitsmema]

Interesting. Are you on Deck 7? I am with 2 other couples, and our cabins are all in different areas of the ship. Haven't seen any issues like what you are describing. The severe asthmatic in our group hasn't had any trouble, either.

 

Yes, we are deck 7. They did our corridor around 1:15am this morning. Two very loud men in the white suits like those that were pictured earlier.