Bahamian tourism officials, feeling the jitters from a rash of cruise ship illnesses, say they hope that the situation is “resolved quickly.” <\/P><\/p>\n
The latest sickened ship, the Carnival Fascination, pulled out of the Port of Nassau over the weekend after a three-day voyage to The Bahamas. <\/P><\/p>\n
By the time the ship docked at the Port of Miami on Monday, 190 passengers and 13 crew members were exhibiting vomiting, diarrhea and stomach pain symptoms, associated with a Norwalk-like virus. <\/P><\/p>\n
The situation was enough to temporarily sidetrack parliamentary debate in the House of Assembly Monday. <\/P><\/p>\n
“We will continue to monitor the situation via the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, industry sources, the media and through various experts to ensure that we, as a port of call, are doing everything possible to support this important industry,” Minister of Tourism Obie Wilchcombe told his parliamentary colleagues. <\/P><\/p>\n
Minister Wilchcombe gave the assurance that the Government of the Bahamas is prepared to implement any programmes to would help to achieve a quick resolution. <\/P><\/p>\n
The cruise ship business is an integral part of the Bahamas tourism industry. <\/P><\/p>\n
A peak in cruise ship visitors has account for an increase in tourists to the end of October. There was an additional 205,000 sea arrivals – a nine percent increase – most of whom were cruise visitors who spent annually around $150 million. <\/P><\/p>\n
“The cruise industry is one of the Bahamas’ long standing business partnerships,” the Tourism Minister said. “We hope this situation is resolved quickly.”<\/P><\/p>\n
Investigators from the CDC on Monday were looking into two more outbreaks of gastrointestinal illnesses aboard cruise ships. <\/P><\/p>\n
The Norwalk virus is one of the most common causes of gastrointestinal illness and tends to strike people in confined spaces, an official said. <\/P><\/p>\n
The virus can be transmitted person to person or by consuming contaminated food or water. Outbreaks occur regularly on land and cruise ship outbreaks occur several times a year, Forney said. <\/P><\/p>\n
Norwalk virus infection is typically marked by vomiting and diarrhea, but the symptoms tend to go away without treatment within a day or two, Dickinson said. <\/P><\/p>\n
In addition to the outbreak on the Fascination, nearly 500 passengers and crew aboard the past two voyages of the Disney cruise ship Magic fell ill with Norwalk virus. <\/P><\/p>\n
The 8-year-old, 855-foot Fascination was disinfected and departed Monday evening for a four-day cruise to Key West , Florida , and Cozumel , Mexico , a few hours later than scheduled, a Carnival spokesman said. <\/P><\/p>\n
Nearly 100 people, or 4.5 percent, of 2,220 passengers booked on the trip elected not to go, he said. All have the choice of a refund or a cruise at another time, he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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