Now on Noordam - Code Red

Currently in Code Red. Captain and crew doing great job.

It did not start onboard. Was brought on from people on land tours.

Captain Bos announced it before we left Seward.

On the brighter side, Glacier Bay was awesome,bears and whales and sunshine on the sail out.

Now in Haines, waiting to go to Skagway.

What's a code red?

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What's a code red?

 

 

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Most likely an outbreak of Noro Virus and ship goes into code red to help contain and minimize the spread of the virus.

What's a code red?

 

 

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The CDC (Center for Disease Control) has excellent information about cruise ship sanitation and what is required when certain health conditions require a change in ship board operations. Code Red is the highest and most cumbersome level of infection control measures and why we keep hearing ..wash your hands, wash your hands, wash your hands. Just like nursing homes, college dorms and the dirtiest places of all - day care centers.

http://search.cdc.gov/search?utf8=✓&affiliate=cdc-main&query=cruise+ship+code+red

Sorry to hear that. Nothing worse than Code Red. Glad to hear you report it is being handled well.

Hoping you stay healthy and it doesn't detract from your cruise and fun too much!

deleted

What's a code red?

Good article: http://www.frommers.com/tips/health-and-travel-insurance/all-hands-off-deck-a-hands-on-guide-to-fighting-a-shipboard-norovirus

Sorry to hear that you are in Code Red.

That happened a couple of times as we left Seward -- ship went into Code Red in spite of the doctor's staff refusing some very sick getting onto the ship -- they had just gotten of off land tours.

Sorry to hear that you are in Code Red.

That happened a couple of times as we left Seward -- ship went into Code Red in spite of the doctor's staff refusing some very sick getting onto the ship -- they had just gotten of off land tours.

Wow ... does Noro show symptoms the same day as exposure? I had no idea - or was it from a previous port stop?:(

Good article: http://www.frommers.com/tips/health-and-travel-insurance/all-hands-off-deck-a-hands-on-guide-to-fighting-a-shipboard-norovirus

This is a good simple explanation. Virox 5 is what we use in the Microbiology lab where I work. If it manages to contain all the staph, e. Coli, salmonella and various gut viruses there, then the ships are making good choices. So begs to say it again....the tourists are letting the ships down by not washing hands, and insisting on travelling when sick.

Wow ... does Noro show symptoms the same day as exposure? I had no idea - or was it from a previous port stop?:(

Not a port stop but, as KK said, from a land tour...

How does the protocol change when

A: Pax show up from independent arrangements with Noro symptoms

or

B: Pax have been under HAL care for several days, arriving healthy and contracting Noro while in HAL (or HAL partner) hands.

Roy

Currently in Code Red. Captain and crew doing great job.

It did not start onboard. Was brought on from people on land tours.

Captain Bos announced it before we left Seward.

On the brighter side, Glacier Bay was awesome,bears and whales and sunshine on the sail out.

Now in Haines, waiting to go to Skagway.

Passengers bring the Noro virus aboard, whether they came from a land tour, port of call, plane, train, terminal, hotel, restaurant, taxi.

Every time I see a noro thread I think of all the people on my aircraft when I came home with noro. I didn't show any symptoms til I woke up in the middle of the night at home, violently ill. Stayed that way for three days. Was awful.

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How does the protocol change when

 

A: Pax show up from independent arrangements with Noro symptoms

 

or

 

B: Pax have been under HAL care for several days, arriving healthy and contracting Noro while in HAL (or HAL partner) hands.

 

Roy

Well don't know about a Pax showing up with Noro, but do know about Pax who were taken care of by HAL.. We were three couples who were going on the Eurodam last Nov. on a 14 day cruise, but DH ended up in the Hospital day before departure.. Then the DH of the second couple also ended up in the same Hospital the same day.. My DH was having breathing problems due to a previous chest cold & needed to have a couple of days of rest with an inhaler..

The third couple went the next day on the cruise.. This cruise was a back to back Ft. Lauderdale to the Eastern Carib & Western Carib..

Our Dr. advised us to stay home for the rest of the week until DH was better.. Then she gave us the OK to go for one week.. So we joined the third couple for the second half of the cruise..

Everything was going well until the DH of the third couple came down with a chest cold & also was feeling icky with some breathing problems.. He saw the Dr. on Board who immediately quarantined him to their cabin.. Hal took great care of them & brought all their meals to them both.. The HAL Dr. decided that our Friend would have to be disembarked into the Hospital in Key West.. Thank goodness it was Key West instead of some where else..

Then the third couple was disembarked in Key West by ambulance & taken to the Hospital where they spent over a week there.. He & his DW (my Friend) were flown home to SouthWest Fla from Key West on a small plane AKA a puddle jumper.. My Friend is still dealing with all the insurance companies involved!

Travel Insurance did pay partially for DH's & my first week of loss, but not all of it..

I'm traveling on Noordam 8/21. How does the cruse line make sure everything is sanitary before the next cruise?

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They will do a major scrub down. It is possible boarding c oulfd b e cxelayedl as they clean gthe entireship

Being in Code red is miserable for crew aned guest

It sounds as if HAL should investigate the hotels and restaurants used in its land tours, given that, as people have reported here, it is so common for those coming off of land tours to bring Noro on board.

That said, I have been on ships with Noro a half dozen times. It is inconvenient, and service is decreased so that staff can be repurposed to support Code Red. Sometimes, if it has been weeks or months with Noro, or in the case of the infamous Crown Princess, an oft-repeated problem, you can see that the staff appears to be depressed. Other times, departure is delayed for deep-cleaning. In all cases (in my experience) the cruise goes on, and we still have a good time. So there are definitely things worse than being in Code Red, inconvenient as it is.

The one thing my DH ALWAYS brings is his own salt and pepper grinders. He hates having to ask the servers to salt and pepper his food, as they are always overworked during Code Red -- and of course there is no salt and pepper on the tables for sanitation reasons. If there is no Code Red, these stay in his suitcase. If there is (or it is announced mid-cruise, as it often is) he is prepared :)

Passengers bring the Noro virus aboard, whether they came from a land tour, port of call, plane, train, terminal, hotel, restaurant, taxi.

And then they lie about it on the form they need to fill out about being sick and vomiting the night before....

How does the protocol change when

 

A: Pax show up from independent arrangements with Noro symptoms

 

or

 

B: Pax have been under HAL care for several days, arriving healthy and contracting Noro while in HAL (or HAL partner) hands.

 

Roy

To the best of my knowledge there is no difference in protocol.

I'll probably get flamed for this but one of the reasons I don't care for HAL tours (although I do some) is that I have seen more than a few that are ill get on the tour busses. It does HAL no good to scrub them down as they do when ill people get on board.

Independent tours - generally speaking, an ill person would not dream of joining the other 4 or 6 or whatever the number is. At least, not on the ones I have been on. The private tour travellers are generally pretty savvy and seasoned travellers. In fact, I have had people cancel, pay their price, etc. because they were ill. They weren't going to risk infecting anyone. Thankfully, I had wait lists and was able to replace them and give them their money back.

Update. Still in code red. They are doing a super clean today in the cabins. Had to put everything away in drawers.

Feel sorry for crew but I am doing OK.

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Update. Still in code red. They are doing a super clean today in the cabins. Had to put everything away in drawers.

Feel sorry for crew but I am doing OK.

 

 

 

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glad to hear that you are o.k.

Sounds like HAL is working hard to remedy things.

thanks for the update - and letting us know you are o.k. :)

Off ship, now waiting at Vancouver airport for flight to SanFran and then to Philadelphia. Due into PHL at 1:00 am [emoji3]

We stayed In code red, supposed to do more cleaning today,not sure if embark is delayed.

On a sad note, we had a medical emergency call blast into the cabin about 2:30 this morning. Passenger in deck 5 had a heart attack,unfortunately he did not make it. Prayers to his family and friends.

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Norovirus has incubation time of 12 to 48 hrs with average of 33 hrs. So, no, someone would not catch it on tour and be ill by the time they came back to ship. They had to be exposed prior to shore trip and had the bad luck of becoming ill while away from ship. Norovirus is always around but seems to hit the summer Alaska cruises especially hard. Crew coming on board for first time can even bring it on. Best protection is to wash, wash, wash. Keep your hands away from your mouth and eyes and eat things that are cooked and not handled.

There are certain medications that can make symptoms better. I am taking Alaska cruise in August on the Amsterdam and will go prepared.