Illness aboard Queen Victoria cruise ship contained, state officials say

An outbreak of gastrointestinal illness aboard the Queen Victoria cruise ship appears to be contained, according to the state Department of Health this afternoon.

The vessel, slated to dock in Honolulu on Feb. 12, is not considered a threat to the people of Hawai‘i. However, state officials say they continue to closely monitor and coordinate with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The illnesses occurred during the ship’s voyage between Florida and San Francisco from Jan. 22-Feb. 6. As of Thursday, 129 passengers and 25 crew members had become ill, according to the CDC. However, cases decreased substantially by the time the ship arrived in San Francisco.

In addition to tracking illness before coming into port, the CDC Vessel Sanitation Program monitored the ship into the next voyage to ensure there was no carryover of illness. VSP continues to monitor for any new increase in illness reports.

Mitigation measures such as increased disinfecting of surfaces and isolation of ill passengers and crew were implemented.

The cause of the illness has not been confirmed at this time, but the symptoms and spread appear to be similar to norovirus.

Queen Victoria is not scheduled to make a port call to Kaua‘i.