MIAMI, Jan. 18 (UPI) -- Nearly 70 passengers and crew members aboard a Royal Caribbean ship for a four-day cruise became ill with what the company said may be a norovirus.
Royal Caribbean said 66 of more than 2,500 passengers, and two of more than 800 crew members, complained of symptoms including vomiting and diarrhea, CNN reported.
The ship, the Majesty of the Seas, docked in Miami Friday after completing a voyage that included stops in the Bahamas and Key West, Fla.
Sick passengers responded well to over-the-counter medication given on the ship, Royal Caribbean said.
The company said it increased cleaning on the ship while at sea to limit the spread of the virus. Once the ship docked in Miami, the company said "an extensive and thorough sanitizing" of the ship and cruise terminal was conducted.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports 80 percent of norovirus outbreaks occur between November and April, WFOR-TV, Miami reported.
About 20 million people fall ill with the disease and between 570 and 800 die from it each year, the CDC says.
Other symptoms include nausea, stomach pain, fever and body aches.
