Australian cruise ship is forced to evacuate 2,000 passengers in Singapore after highly contagious virus causes mass vomiting and diarrhoea
- The Sun Princess luxury cruise ship had an outbreak of the norovirus onboard
- Staff evacuated 2,000 passengers in Singapore so the ship could be fumigated
- Norovirus is highly contagious, with symptoms including diarrhoea and vomiting
An Australian cruise ship has been forced to evacuate 2,000 passengers in Singapore after a contagious virus caused mass vomiting and diarrhoea.
The Sun Princess cruise ship departed Fremantle, Western Australia, bound for Singapore on November 1, before passengers felt the brunt of a norovirus outbreak.
‘Onboard sanitation was swiftly stepped up following some guests reporting gastrointestinal symptoms confirmed as being due to norovirus,’ a Princess Cruises spokeswoman told Perth Now.
The Sun Princess cruise ship (pictured) has been forced to evacuate 2,000 passengers in Singapore after a contagious virus caused mass vomiting and diarrhoea.
‘The vast majority of the 2000 guests on Sun Princess were unaffected but it takes relatively few cases of illness to be reported for onboard sanitation measures to be increased.’
The virus spreads very easily as it lives on surfaces, with victims picking up the disease by touching infected objects.
Symptoms of norovirus generally last between one and three days, with medical experts recommending regularly washing your hands to avoid the disease.
The Sun Princess has recommenced its expedition, with some passengers choosing to fly home from Singapore instead of re-boarding the cruise ship.
Between December 2016 and February 2017, Carnival Australia, the ship’s owner, had eight outbreaks of norovirus on their voyages.
‘The vast majority of the 2000 guests on Sun Princess were unaffected but it takes relatively few cases of illness to be reported for onboard sanitation measures to be increased,’ a Princess Cruises spokeswoman said.