Nearly 900 people aboard cruise ships were sickened from gastrointestinal disease in December amid an escalation in both the frequency and severity of outbreaks, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Last year, there were 16 outbreaks on cruise ships, from norovirus, salmonella, E. coli or other unidentified pathogens that cause gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea or vomiting. That's the largest number of cruise ship outbreaks in 12 years.
Five of those outbreaks occurred in December. The most recent incident involved the British ocean liner Queen Mary 2, where nearly 13% of passengers and over 5% of crew aboard were infected.