Oosterdam code red

[Ofmyheart]

Just disembarked the Oosterdam in Tampa. We were the lucky ship to get Noro and the cruise cough onboard.

 

It amazed me the library was closed, the plants were removed from the tables, no self service but you could touch the venue was every evening and touch the slot machines as often as you wished.

 

Cleaning by crew was an endless process and the captain daily reminded us to wash your hands. The medical staff never made an announcement about precautions or suggestions.

 

I hope they truly did a deep clean before she left last night. Certainly did not make for our best cruise.

[jakkojakko]

I'm currently onboard. We are still in Code red , although it's been getting better . The library has been shut for most of the crossing. No self serve in the Lido and they are constantly wiping down surfaces.

They also were spraying the chair pads on the deck chairs on Promenade deck.

It was a great crossing with fantastic weather and today we get to hear Captain Albert.

 

 

 

 

 

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And yet no mention at all on his blog.

[TampaMike]

The delay for embarkation yesterday had several factors. With the Oosterdam's initial arrival in Tampa, there were several inspections from the USCG, USPH and all crew needed to be inspected by CBP. None of that can be controlled by HAL. Add to that the need to sanitize the ship, restore the ship's depleted stores, a large crew turnover typical of a seasonal re-positioning and yes, the embarkation will be impacted.

 

Further, it is not appropriate for Captain's Albert's blog to be the information source for situations as this. This is to be communicated by HAL corporate and once on board, the Captain (of the ship) and Medical officers.

[Ofmyheart]

Heard a rumor that the Coast Guard delayed their inspection until the ship returns next Friday. Agree it is inappropriate for the captain to post such on his blog. However was on the ship for 15 days and never heard a word from the medical officers regarding the conditions. Find that inappropriate that the medical team could not advise passengers of medical conditions on board, esp since I am a nurse.

[RuthC]

However was on the ship for 15 days and never heard a word from the medical officers regarding the conditions. Find that inappropriate that the medical team could not advise passengers of medical conditions on board, esp since I am a nurse.

Didn't the captain report that there was noro, and advise to wash your hands and be careful about touching things?

If he did do that, then there was no reason for the medical staff to duplicate his efforts.

[Ofmyheart]

Yes the captain told us daily to wash our hands. However he is not a medical professional, it would've seem to of been more appropriate from the medical officer. Also there was no mention of the also very rampant at cruise cough.

 

I also believe that there should've been some mention to the crew to be more careful with precautions. Once again as a nurse, I could count the number of times that I saw crew officers touching their faces and mouth's and then going on to touch equipment.

[aa7yy]

Just disembarked the Oosterdam in Tampa.

 

Cleaning by crew was an endless process and the captain daily reminded us to wash your hands. The medical staff never made an announcement about precautions or suggestions.

 

I hope they truly did a deep clean before she left last night. Certainly did not make for our best cruise.

 

I also just got off the ship. My wife was sick for 3 days in the Barcelona -Rome leg and again in the middle of the Atlantic. I just had the "dry cough" problem pretty constantly.

 

My observations that will be in the survey. I have been of four HAL Cruises, 8 legs. On the first 3 cruises (6 legs) the food service on the Lido was always served for the first 72 hours. When questioned, the response was that for "new" passengers it took "about" 72 hours to make sure there was no sickness. It was for "our" safety. On both legs of this cruise the "dirty" passengers had the hands on the food in the first hour.

 

Second, reported to me by a ships officer. There was a flyer, in our box, the explained the sickness and the precautions in English. There was a large contingent or Europeans on board, that could not read English. To them, the stomach problems were, "something I ate". They continued to wander about.

 

I can certainly understand why you wouldn't read everything in you box as a lot of it is sales pitches.

 

Last of all, everything below the Lido deck during the cruise was a "meat" locker. Public Space on the 2nd and 3rd deck were deserted until around 5:o'clock. To cold to sit in without a jacket or sweater. The only usable space was the Crows Nest and that became the garbage bag for everything. No longer a quite place to read.

 

I thought the staff did an incredible job of cleaning. Not to happy about the guys with the masks on spraying the tables next to me though. More then one passenger screamed at them.

[Ofmyheart]

I hate to point fingers but many of the European contingence would be part of a sandwich or bread and set it down on the table and pick it up again. Also I don't know that they are aware that you should not cough into your hands, this is where the medical team could have given appropriate advice.

 

As for the excessive papers delivered, i'm sure no one read all of them. And with the code red I am sure none of that paperwork was recycled. So much for being green.

[boards]

Can someone report on the code red situation now??

Edited November 23, 2016 by boards

[jmacjmac]

Can someone report on the code red situation now??

 

We did the usual 72 hrs with code red procedures and then got released on Monday. Every thing back to normal, haven't seen or heard of any illness this trip. Great job by the crew.

[boards]

We did the usual 72 hrs with code red procedures and then got released on Monday. Every thing back to normal, haven't seen or heard of any illness this trip. Great job by the crew.

 

Thank you - hope it continues to go well, we board on Friday.

[Tampa Girl]

And yet no mention at all on his blog.

 

The primary captain was Robert Jan Kan (Mr. Personality. And, yes, I am being sarcastic.) Wasn't Capt. Albert the traveling overseeing captain who gave the wonderful talk on HAL's history?

[Tampa Girl]

We did the usual 72 hrs with code red procedures and then got released on Monday. Every thing back to normal, haven't seen or heard of any illness this trip. Great job by the crew.

 

Unfortunately, however, on the last two cruises, which included the Oosterdam TA, the ships were not in Code Red for the first 48 hours, as they used to be. I don't know if that would have avoided the subsequent outbreak. Does anyone know why this initial procedure is not being followed now?

[aa7yy]

Unfortunately, however, on the last two cruises, which included the Oosterdam TA, the ships were not in Code Red for the first 48 hours, as they used to be. I don't know if that would have avoided the subsequent outbreak. Does anyone know why this initial procedure is not being followed now?

 

I was told by a top food service person that it was a change in policy from the top. They are no longer concerned about the first 72 hours. So this was payback. I was told by another employee that the Eurodam had the same problem at about the same time or the previous leg. We kept finding them at the same ports. Maybe 3 or 4 times.

 

So we need to beat up on CCL to go back to the 72 hour period, for our good. My wife was down for 6 days out of 27.

[Baby sitter grandma]

I was told by a top food service person that it was a change in policy from the top. They are no longer concerned about the first 72 hours. So this was payback. I was told by another employee that the Eurodam had the same problem at about the same time or the previous leg. We kept finding them at the same ports. Maybe 3 or 4 times.

 

So we need to beat up on CCL to go back to the 72 hour period, for our good. My wife was down for 6 days out of 27.

I agree. Both my DH and I have been ill since leaving the ship in Tampa. We did not have Noro symptoms but we experienced on our last sea day a dry cough and sore throat. By the time we got home we were not feeling well at all. Sinus, headache and cruise cough. We now both are still under the weather and have not returned to our daily activities at all.

I feel the staff were very diligent in their efforts to sanitize everything however so many passengers were coughing in all venues especially the Crow's Nest and Ocean Bar. I feel there should always be 72 hours of no touch in Lido at the beginning of the cruise. We mostly stayed clear of the Lido for the last 12 days of the cruise. We used room service for breakfast and we still got ill. Just very thankful we did not have noro symptoms. Yes, we washed our hands as instructed as well at all times. Not a nice way to end a wonderful cruise.

[HALaftSuitesfor2]

We were on the Oosterdam crossing to Tampa. We boarded in Barcelona, then picked up passengers in Rome for the next segment of the cruise. Staff told us the virus started in Monte Carlo, which was before the next embarkation in Rome. 3 days after leaving Rome, we noticed all salt, pepper shakers and anything else normally on the tables gone. The servers and lido personnel dispensed everything. It was a challenge for all who handled the food for serving and a new dining experience for us. The Pinnacle staff even pulled extra duty in the Neptune Lounge, preparing coffee and serving each guest.

 

I will say, the ships crew did everything possible to sanitize and help prevent the spread. Walls, doors and railings were wiped down every 2 hrs in the cabin halls. Our cabin stewards were exhausted. As we know, first hand from our deck aft on 8, there were at least 3 cabins with cases. The people would not stay in their rooms. No matter how the captain stressed for individuals to remain in their staterooms, they ignored the warnings. As our steward said, "We can't make them stay in their rooms". We touched nothing and used our own cabin bathroom.

 

Holland did a tremendous job getting the situation under control. When we reached Tampa, there were no reported cases with either crew or passengers. I have nothing but praise for Holland and the Oosterdam staff. Sure it was a challenge, some inconveniences and a new twist on dining but they followed protocols and kept the situation under control and had it resolved by Tampa. Taking precautions on the first Caribbean outing only makes great sense.

 

 

 

 

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[Tampa Girl]

I agree. Both my DH and I have been ill since leaving the ship in Tampa. We did not have Noro symptoms but we experienced on our last sea day a dry cough and sore throat. By the time we got home we were not feeling well at all. Sinus, headache and cruise cough. We now both are still under the weather and have not returned to our daily activities at all.

I feel the staff were very diligent in their efforts to sanitize everything however so many passengers were coughing in all venues especially the Crow's Nest and Ocean Bar. I feel there should always be 72 hours of no touch in Lido at the beginning of the cruise. We mostly stayed clear of the Lido for the last 12 days of the cruise. We used room service for breakfast and we still got ill. Just very thankful we did not have noro symptoms. Yes, we washed our hands as instructed as well at all times. Not a nice way to end a wonderful cruise.

 

 

Completely agree. We had the same problem - became ill with a cold as we were leaving the ship. No big surprise, given the constant coughing and hacking aboard the ship.

[St Pete Cruiser]

We were sorry to hear of the code red and for all those who suffered. I had really wanted to do that cruise, but we are going tomorrow on the 14 day. Drove by the terminal last Saturday and was impressed with seeing the Oosterdam at #3 looming high over it.

[take us away]

An email from HAL this morning about our sailing this Friday. Gonna have to wait a little longer than we hoped to board.

 

IMPORTANT NOTIFICATION:

Please be advised that during the current cruise there were elevated case

counts of gastrointestinal illness among guests, confirmed to have been caused by norovirus. A comprehensive sanitation program was launched in response, and ms Oosterdam will undergo a prolonged disinfection in Tampa on

Friday, November 18. Check-in and embarkation for your cruise will begin at

1:30 PM, and your stateroom will be available by 2:30 PM. Please do not arrive prior to 1:00 PM as there is limited seating in the terminal. To minimize

terminal congestion we will use a progressive check-in schedule as follows: 1:30pm ? Rotterdam & Navigation Deck

2:00pm ? Upper Verandah Deck

2:30pm ? Verandah & Observation Deck

3:00pm ? Main & Upper Promenade Deck

All guests must board by 3:30 PM. The ship will depart Tampa at 4:30 PM. We look forward to welcoming you aboard.

 

Had the same issue on the Amsterdam a few years back when we were on a B2B. We had mandatory disembarkation but HAL provided a free tour and lunch for those staying on. A crew came on and steamed cleaned almost all surfaces. Watching the people that came on in hazmat suits and respirators was totally surreal. After a few days, the code red was lifted and all was fine. Sounds like they are being very organized to get everyone on board as soon as they can.

 

Best of luck. Watch out for hand rails and door handles as it is amazing that some people do not wash their hands after using a rest room or do the token wetting with a splash of water.

Edited November 24, 2016 by take us away

[Oviedo32765]

Watch out for hand rails and door handles as it is amazing that some people do not wash their hands after using a rest room or do the token wetting with a splash of water.

 

Just off the Oosterdam. The last couple of days of the cruise, I noticed a lot of people coughing. Almost every cougher was coughing right into their uncovered hands.

 

I can only imagine these people sliding their hands up and down the hand rails.

 

From the Center for Disease Control and Prevention:

 

To help stop the spread of germs:

 

• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze.
  
• Put your used tissue in a waste basket.
  
• If you don't have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your upper sleeve, not your hands.
  

[Petunia1950]

The primary captain was Robert Jan Kan (Mr. Personality. And, yes, I am being sarcastic.) Wasn't Capt. Albert the traveling overseeing captain who gave the wonderful talk on HAL's history?

 

I was fortunate to be seated at the Captain's table during dinner the first formal night out of Tampa. Captain Kan was extremely personable, telling us of past ship assignments, family stories, vacation tales, etc. Perhaps his personality doesn't come through when he's working, but it is very apparent when he's "off duty." I, for one, appreciate his professionalism.

 

The entire cruise was delightful.

[AV8rix]

As we know, first hand from our deck aft on 8, there were at least 3 cabins with cases. The people would not stay in their rooms. No matter how the captain stressed for individuals to remain in their staterooms, they ignored the warnings. As our steward said, "We can't make them stay in their rooms".

 

....about the handling of noncompliant pax during a Code Red.

 

I have seen many, many threads with statements like the above-quoted one. If occupants of a stateroom are positively identified as having noro (or respiratory ailments or anything else contagious) and the crew is able to document their behavior as being noncompliant with with instructions to self-isolate....then a member of the medical staff (or bridge crew or whatever) should warn them that they will be denied permission to book with HAL again. And I believe that this should be an official policy of the line.

 

Again, this is just my opinion.

[Tampa Girl]

I was fortunate to be seated at the Captain's table during dinner the first formal night out of Tampa. Captain Kan was extremely personable, telling us of past ship assignments, family stories, vacation tales, etc. Perhaps his personality doesn't come through when he's working, but it is very apparent when he's "off duty." I, for one, appreciate his professionalism.

 

The entire cruise was delightful.

 

Glad to know that he has a personable side. I did not witness it, even after I made a concerted effort to personally thank him for hosting the Suites party. He seemed very uncomfortable around a lot of people.

[Appalachian Mountain Mama]

Av8rix, I absolutely agree. Given that HAL's demographic tends to be older and an older person can be hit much harder by some of these bugs, a person who knows they are contagious but puts others at risk anyway should be banned.

 

 

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[boards]

We were the cruise following this one and can report that there was no code red the entire cruise.