# Balmoral - Hundreds Sick



## Binnacle (Jul 22, 2005)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-36245284


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## Pompeyfan (Aug 9, 2005)

I have also posted this in Cruises & Cruising here on SN.

Norovirus is far more common ashore, but when a cruise ship is affected, it is front page news.


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## Mariner44 (Feb 3, 2012)

Not the sort of publicity that Fred Olsen will welcome.


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## cunamara (Aug 9, 2005)

Have just watched the Balmoral enter the harbour of Saint John, not sure if all passengers will be allowed ashore.


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## Tmac1720 (Jun 24, 2005)

Fred Olsen Line appears to have this quite a lot or is it just that his ships make the newspapers?


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## Binnacle (Jul 22, 2005)

I have never travelled on any of these cruise ships but from what I have read and heard, to prevent the spread of foot and mouth disease, the hygiene regulations on coastal cattle ships are stricter than on cruise ships. All cattle may be driven through a disinfectant foot tray, I understand some passengers on returning from the shore refuse to do so on boarding, without penalty, also some decline before entering a dining room to use the disinfectant hand dispensers. Passengers who fail to comply with hygiene rules should be landed on the quayside, bag and baggage, unfortunately it may take a more serious outbreak of disease before action is taken.


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## Pompeyfan (Aug 9, 2005)

Firstly, the hand gels are of no use. Passengers are urged to use them, but they will not kill norovirus. So is a false sense of security. In fact, making passengers believe these gels get rid of the bug could actually spread it more.

The only way to get rid of norovirus on the hands is good old soap and water. The soap dislodges the virus, and rinsing really well washes it away. It does not kill the virus, but washes it down the drain. Simple hygiene is more affective than these so-called new hygiene rules that as I indicated will spread the virus than stopping it. Rather than concentrate on something that will not work, passengers should be made to wash their hands properly, and rinsing well before going to the restaurant. Yet, those on cruises will tell you that a lot of people leave the toilet without even washing their hands. No wonder this virus spreads so quickly. It is very contagious spreading quickly.

In my former job, we handled some of the most dangerous pathogens known to man, but used simple hygiene practice without catching any. 

Like I said in post #2, norovirus is far more common ashore. In percentage terms, cruise ships are at the bottom of the ladder, but great fodder for the media blowing it out of all proportion. And of course, we had viral gastroenteritis when when I was at sea in the 1970s. The only difference was that it was not called norovirus then, but the same group of viruses first found at a school in Norwalk, Ohio in 1968. There was no Internet in those days, no instant messaging, so never made the newspapers. Yet we had several cases every cruise or 'line voyage', usually tracing the source. In fact, I had crew in my Crew & Isolation Hospital with a stomach bug almost every day. And again, using simple hygiene, I never caught it despite nursing them. 

Therefore, these outbreaks are nothing new, but try telling that to those who like to put all the blame on cruise lines. But the cruise lines are not helping themselves by not giving proper advice on infection control such as washing hands properly.


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## China hand (Sep 11, 2008)

A breath of common sense, David. What the press can do, eh? Is honest plain factual reporting another of those "old fashioned" ideas?(Hippy)


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