Second Cruise Ship Illness Contagion Reported Aboard Norwegian Joy

The Norwegian Joy cruise ship has reported sick passengers for the second time in a week.

Authorities have not identified the cause of the sickness, which has sickened at least 10 passengers this time around. Passengers told CBS Los Angeles that symptoms included stomach cramps, nausea, and diarrhea. 

One passenger reported that he went and saw the ship’s medic, who then diagnosed him with gastroenteritis. The man reports that he was quarantined to his room with his family. The passenger says that his wife protested, presumably because she did not want to be locked in a room with her sick husband when she and their infant were not showing signs of sickness. Eventually, she was able to get the cruise line to give them a separate room.

The passengers expressed concern that the Joy is expected to sail again shortly after disembarking the sick passengers. They noted something that we have been saying for years: cruise companies’ “disinfecting” routine after hosting dozens or even hundreds of sick passengers does not go far enough. It seems that in their rush to make profits, they expose a new group of people to an environment that is contaminated with illness.