France quarantines more than 1,700 people on cruise ship due to gastroenteritis | Health Issues

A British cruise ship docked southwest of the French city of Bordeaux reported 49 suspected cases.

French authorities have temporarily banned 1,233 passengers and 514 crew members from leaving a British cruise ship docked southwest of Bordeaux after about 50 suspected cases of gastroenteritis were reported.

The vessel, the Ambition, was carrying dozens of British or Irish nationals and one French national and had left Belfast and Liverpool before arriving in southwest France on Tuesday evening.

In a statement on Wednesday, regional health officials said there was no indication that the stomach flu outbreak was linked to the group of hantaviruses reported on the MV Hondius cruise ship, which sailed between Argentina and the Canary Islands.

Officials said the disembarkation was a precautionary measure while medical tests were carried out.

A Cruise Line spokesperson said additional hygiene and prevention measures were immediately implemented on board the ship.

The company said 48 passengers and one crew member were showing stomach symptoms as of Wednesday morning.

The spokesman said the data showed that crimes had risen after people boarded in Liverpool on Saturday. All shore excursions in Bordeaux have been canceled and affected passengers have received full refunds, the company said.

“Once permission is granted, visitors will be allowed to disembark,” the company said in a Facebook post.

Ambassador Cruise Line, a British cruise line targeting the over 50s, was founded in 2021 by Christian Verhounig, former CEO of Cruise & Maritime Voyages, which took over in 2020.

A 92-year-old Briton died of cardiac arrest on Monday while on a stopover in Brest, Brittany, in northwestern France. The death does not appear to be related to the spread of the stomach at this time, the Gironde region said.

Gastrointestinal diseases are common on cruise ships because viruses can spread quickly in confined spaces.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported four outbreaks on cruise ships so far this year, including cases involving E coli and norovirus.

Gastroenteritis, often called the stomach flu, often causes vomiting and diarrhea. Although highly contagious, it is usually not serious although it can sometimes cause complications such as dehydration.

Health officials stressed that the disease is very different from hantavirus, which has high mortality rates but rarely spreads between people and often requires close contact to spread.