Investigation Update on the Westerdam

Cruise Line: Holland America Line

Cruise Ship: Westerdam

Voyage Dates: March 1–March 16, 2020

Number of passengers who have reported being ill during the voyage out of total number of passengers onboard: 2 of 18 (11.11%)

Number of crew who have reported being ill during the voyage out of total number of crew onboard: 25 of 680 (3.68%)

Predominant symptoms: diarrhea

Causative agent: unknown

Actions: In response to the outbreak, Holland America Line and the crew aboard the ship reported the following actions:

• Increasing cleaning and disinfection procedures according to their outbreak prevention and response plan.
• Collecting stool specimens from passenger and crew cases and sending specimens for testing.
• Sending daily gastrointestinal illness reports to VSP.

VSP is monitoring the situation and the ship’s outbreak response and sanitation procedures. VSP is also helping the cruise line investigate the causative agent and prevent further outbreaks.

Note: The gastrointestinal illness cases reported are totals for the entire voyage and do not represent the number of active (symptomatic) gastrointestinal cases at any given port of call or at disembarkation.

Learn how passengers can protect themselves with these tips for healthy cruising.