Ship sickens 2 families on separate trips

Ship sickens 2 families on separate trips

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Story Published: May 30, 2007 at 11:22 PM PDT

Story Updated: May 31, 2007 at 12:51 PM PDT

By KOMO Staff

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Two local families say they got sick on the same cruise ship, but on two separate trips.

Dolores and Herman Warfield just returned from their 22nd cruise adventure on the Norwegian Star's Alaska cruise. They paid for a seven-day trip, but their vacation was over in just 72 hours.

"On the third day out, we both came down with the Norwalk virus," Dolores said.

The couple was quarantined in their cabin, leaving them only to see the ship's doctor. During their frequent visits to the infirmary, they learned other passengers had fallen sick as well.

But there was no way to know exactly how many; the Warfields say the staff never made an announcement and never warned passengers of the sick quarantined in their cabins.

Norwegian Cruise Line confirmed in a statement that six percent of their passengers, or roughly 130 people, reported symptoms of the stomach flu.

The cruise line stated it carried out an extensive range of preventative measures on board, and did not expect the issue would carry forward into the next cruise. But it did.

Gina Schacht boarded the Star the same day the Warfields disembarked. As a 75-year-old diabetic awaiting a kidney transplant, the Alaska cruise was her last vacation.

She and her daughter came home a week later with a big bill and memories they'd rather forget.

"Trip from hell I say, because all my time I spent in a cabin, being sick," she said.

Schacht says the cruise credited her $275 for some expenses, but not the cost of what should've been her dream trips.

"I think I spent my money for nothing, if I'm gonna be sick, I'll be sick at home. I don't have to spend over a $1,000 to lay in bed," she said.

In an official statement, Norwegian Cruise Line never says it was the Norwalk virus that sickened the people on board, though passengers tell KOMO 4 News the ship's doctor confirmed it.

Schacht says she fortunately bought traveler's insurance, and hopes to be reimbursed for the days she missed.

The Warfields hope to be reimbursed for the $200 they spent at the infirmary.

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