3rd ship with illness outbreak returns to port

PORT EVERGLADES, Fla. (WSVN) -- A third ship with a reported outbreak of passengers with a gastro-intestinal illness has returned to port.

The Celebrity Constellation docked back at Port Everglades Saturday after several crew members and passengers came down with symptoms of the Norovirus.

Lynda Jowell and her husband were just two of more than 100 on board the cruise ship that became sick, but they were pleased with how the ship handled the situation. "My husband and I both got sick, but it was handled very well," said Jowell. "They sanitized our room, they took everything out. They used the steam to sanitize it. They wore plastic suits. They cleaned everything. They took all the bedding out, everything."

Passengers who did not fall ill credited the crews' effort to keep everything clean during the outbreak. "Those poor guys on board, they work so hard, morning, noon and night," said passenger Joe Wood. "When we left, they were all dressed in kind of a martian outfit with gloves and masks and coveralls. They were trying to clean every aspect of the ship."

"We had one sick person at our table one night. I guess it only lasted one night, and they took care of her," said passenger Jay Stearman.

Special precautions were taken by crew members to help minimize the spread of illness on board before the Constellation docked. "They didn't let you pick your own food. They picked it for you and gave it to you," said passenger Carla Stearman.

The Crown Princess, one of the other ships that experienced an outbreak, cut a cruise short and returned to port Thursday, after more than 300 passengers came down with the gastro-intestinal illness. The ship underwent an intense decontamination for two days and has now set sail on another cruise.

Despite the third ship and forth outbreak of illness, cruise customers continue to keep coming back for vacations. "We've already made reservations for next year," said Jowell.

Inspectors from the Center for Disease Control have been on both the Celebrity Constellation and Crown Princess.

Officials have not confirmed that the sickness on the ships was the Norovirus, but they say the symptoms are similar.

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