Researchers have found that restrooms on cruise ships are not being cleaned properly, which may enable the norovirus to live on surfaces for weeks. Since 2005, there have been 66 outbreaks of gastrointestinal illness on cruise ships, and although the researchers have not directly linked the outbreaks to poor restroom cleaning, they think there might be a correlation, the New York Times reports.
“We’re not saying that poor cleaning causes norovirus outbreaks,” Dr. Philip C. Carling, the lead researcher, said. “I believe that one or more people with noroviruswho handle food, or possibly a passenger, comes down with norovirus,and substandard hygiene serves as a facilitator of the spread in aclosed population.”
–Aileen Torres