Outbreak brings cruise to early end

KINGSTON, Jamaica – The Royal Caribbean cruise line on Sunday ended a ship’s 10-day trip in the Caribbean early after hundreds of passengers and crew members were sickened with a gastrointestinal illness.

The Miami-based company made the announcement a few hours after officials from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention boarded the Explorer of the Seas during its U.S. Virgin Islands port call to investigate the illness and evaluate the outbreak response.

“New reports of illness have decreased day-over-day, and many guests are again up and about. Nevertheless, the disruptions caused by the early wave of illness means that we were unable to deliver the vacation our guests were expecting,” Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. said in a statement.

The decision to end the trip came after consultation between CDC officials and members of the company’s medical team, the company said.

The CDC said earlier that 281, or nearly 10 percent, of the 3,050 passengers aboard the 15-deck ship reported getting sick during the cruise that left Cape Liberty, N.J., on Tuesday. Twenty-two crew members also reported feeling ill, according to a statement from the health agency.