A dream cruise trip turned into a nightmare for passengers when over 200 people were left confined to their cabins due to illness. People on the P&O Canary Islands cruise became seriously ill and are taking legal action against the cruise line. Passengers suffered vomiting and diarrhoea after boarding luxury ship MV Ventura in April.
Their ordeal follows reports of hundreds of others being forced to isolate following a reported outbreak of norovirus on the same ship just a month before. But after being assured the ship had been fully cleaned, many reported falling ill within days of their "special" trip with a nasty stomach bug. Lawyer Jatinder Paul, who is representing the passengers, said: “All of our clients were very much looking forward to their cruise but their first-hand accounts regarding their illness and the impact it had on them all are concerning.
What’s even more worrying is that after their holidays, other cruise passengers are said to have being struck down with similar symptoms and this reflects the growing number of passengers we’re now hearing from. Norovirus is a particularly unpleasant illness and can be very serious in some cases. P&O said “enhanced” sanitation procedures were put into effect after passengers became unwell with a gastric illness.
The cruise firm did not confirm the number of people involved. Nurse Jessica Bird, 27, and her gran Cynthia Davies, 86, were among those who paid for a 10-day cruise that would include stops in Santande.