PARIS (AP) — Over 1,700 passengers and crew on a British cruise ship were ordered to remain on board after an outbreak of gastrointestinal illness, French authorities said Wednesday.They dismissed any link to a deadly hantavirus outbreak on another vessel that has put European health authorities on alert.The Ambition was midway through a 14-night cruise from Belfast and Liverpool that was due to take in ports in northern Spain and along France’s Atlantic coast.It reached Bordeaux on Tuesday evening, according to the operator, Ambassador Cruise Line.The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which tracks outbreaks on voyages that call on U.S. and foreign ports, recorded 23 gastrointestinal outbreaks on cruise ships last year. Most were caused by norovirus, including a new strain.Last week, a Caribbean Princess cruise ship reported a norovirus outbreak during a voyage with more than 3,100 passengers aboard, according to the U.S. health agency. More than 140 passengers and 15 crew members fell ill during the trip, which ended Monday, the CDC said.
The prefect of Nouvelle-Aquitaine region and Gironde department, Étienne Guyot, suspended disembarkation from the Ambition and restricted the vessel’s interactions with the port of Bordeaux.
