Cruise line spokeswoman says 300 passengers have stomach ailment on ship in Caribbean

Cruise line: 300 sick aboard ship in Caribbean

CHARLESTON, S.C. — A cruise line says about 300 guests have fallen ill with a stomach ailment aboard a cruise to the Caribbean that departed from South Carolina.

Celebrity Cruise spokeswoman Cynthia Martinez said Monday night that passengers aboard the Mercury began complaining a day earlier of upset stomachs, vomiting and diarrhea. Martinez said a total of around 1,800 people are aboard. The ship left Charleston on Feb. 15.

She said the ship’s medical facilities were overwhelmed. Another doctor and nurse came aboard in St. Kitts in the British Virgin Islands. The ship made four other stops in the Caribbean.

It’s not clear what pathogen was involved, but samples were being dropped off in Puerto Rico for testing. The ship was scheduled to return to Charleston Friday.