TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is investigating why more than 90 cruise passengers got sick on a Royal Caribbean ship that docked in Tampa on Saturday morning.
According to the CDC, anyone on board who got sick experienced vomiting and diarrhea. Passengers 8 On Your Side spoke with said they managed to stay healthy, but they did notice that certain protocols were put in place to keep everyone safe.
On the Radiance of the Seas ship, some people were not just getting seasick. But they experienced an outbreak that made for an uncomfortable experience.
Officials with the CDC said at least 89 passengers and 2 crew members reported being ill on the ship, with symptoms lasting 24 hours. The voyagers left the Port of Tampa on Feb. 1 and the outbreak was reported on Feb. 4.
“We just made sure to stay healthy and wash our hands constantly, try not to touch surfaces and don’t touch your face, and we were good,” said passenger Donna Cox.
While abroad, some passengers noticed things looked a little different.
“They stepped up their program to do a lot of cleaning, it slowed the crew down because they had to clean,” said Joe Rayburn.
“In the cafeteria, or the wind jammers, normally you serve yourself, they were serving us,” said Barb Radasch. “Nobody was touching all the spoons and everything for the serving utensils and that was great. It made you feel better.”
The passengers also noticed a lack of people at certain points during the voyage.
“There was a lot of people as you would go to your evening dining, then you would see tables that were empty, several tables,” Rayburn said.
CDC’s data shows that this year, one ship had an E.coli outbreak, another one had a foodborne illness caused by eating contaminated fish, called Ciguatera, and three others had Norovirus.
Radiance of the Seas marks the sixth ship in 2025 to have an outbreak.
Royal Caribbean officials said while this illness is not Norovirus, the CDC has not finished its testing to determine what type of outbreak it was.
A Royal Caribbean group spokesperson sent a statement to 8 On Your Side.
“Enhanced measures have been implemented onboard in an abundance of caution to protect the health and comfort of all our guests and crew.”
The CDC will continue its testing to find out the cause and type of outbreak. For more on the outbreak, click here.
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