Another cruise ship nightmare is making headlines and this time, more than 100 passengers and crew members reportedly fell ill aboard the Caribbean Princess during a norovirus outbreak.
Norovirus is a highly contagious virus that causes acute gastroenteritis, the inflammation of the stomach and intestines.
Often called the “stomach flu” or “stomach bug,” it is unrelated to influenza. It causes sudden, severe vomiting and diarrhea, with symptoms typically lasting 1 to 3 days. It spreads rapidly via contaminated food, water, or surfaces.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Vessel Sanitation Program, 102 of 3,116 passengers (3.3%) and 13 of 1,131 crew members (1.2%) reported violent vomiting and diarrhea during the ship’s current 13-day Caribbean voyage.
The outbreak was officially reported to the CDC on May 7, 2026.
The ship departed Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on April 28 and isn’t scheduled to return until May 11.
This marks the fourth gastrointestinal illness outbreak tracked by the CDC on cruise ships so far in 2026 and the second involving a Princess Cruises vessel.
According to the CDC, Princess Cruises has been forced to ramp up emergency sanitation protocols, including intensified cleaning and disinfection, isolating sick passengers and crew, collecting stool samples for testing, and consulting with federal health officials in an attempt to contain the outbreak.
Princess Cruises also said the vessel will undergo a full deep cleaning when it returns to Port Canaveral.
This virus is different from hantavirus.
The Gateway Pundit previously reported that three people are dead, and several others are seriously ill after a Hantavirus outbreak aboard a cruise ship in the Atlantic.
Hantavirus is transmitted to humans by mice and rats, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
According to South African media, the MV Hondius cruise ship departed from Argentina and sailed to Cape Verde.
“Hantavirus infections are typically linked to environmental exposure (exposure to infected rodents’ urine or feces). While rare, hantavirus may spread between people, and can lead to severe respiratory illness and requires careful patient monitoring, support and response,” The WHO said.
More from Yahoo News:
The U.S. is among a number of countries working to prevent further spread of hantavirus after a deadly outbreak on the MV Hondius, a Dutch cruise ship now bound for Spain’s Canary Islands.
The ship is expected to anchor offshore at Tenerife early Sunday. Passengers will be transferred via smaller boats to the Port of Granadilla and then taken in sealed-off buses to the airport for repatriation flights, Spanish authorities said. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is traveling to Tenerife on Saturday to coordinate the evacuation alongside Spain’s health and interior ministers, AFP reported via The Telegraph.
Six people have now been confirmed infected with hantavirus, and four are hospitalized, according to the WHO. Three people have died: a Dutch couple and a German national.
In the U.S., health officials in Arizona, California, Georgia, New Jersey, Texas and Virginia are monitoring residents for potential infections linked to the cruise ship. New Jersey was the latest state to announce it was tracking residents, with the state’s Department of Health saying Friday it is monitoring two people who may have been exposed during air travel abroad. No U.S. cases have been reported.
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