Rotherham nurse, 27, hooked up with heart monitor on P&O Cruise after falling 'seriously ill' with grandma

The group of passengers suffered vomiting and diarrhoea after boarding the luxury ship MV Ventura in April this year. 

Their ordeal follows reports of hundreds of others being forced to isolate following a reported outbreak of norovirus on the same ship just a month before.

But after being assured the ship had been fully cleaned, many reported falling ill within days of their 'special' trip with a nasty stomach bug.  

One ended up being hooked up to a heart monitor after suffering chest pains and they are among a number of people now considering legal action against P&O.

Nurse Jessica Bird, 27, from Rotherham, and her gran Cynthia Davies, 86, from Sheffield were among those who had paid for a 10-day cruise that would include stops in Santander and Lisbon.

They boarded the ship at Southampton on April 20 but six days later Jessica started suffering from vomiting and diarrhoea.

She alerted staff to her concerns for her gran, who had mobility problems, who was moved to a different cabin.

Jessica’s condition quickly deteriorated and she was quarantined and attached to a drip.

The ship’s doctor also hooked her up to an ECG monitor for her heart when Jessica complained of chest pains.

She remained ill for the remainder of the trip and was forced to take three days off work when she returned home to Rotherham.

Meanwhile Cynthia started feeling ill the day after she returned to her home in Sheffield.

Jessica and Cynthia said that other than ‘sneeze guards’, they did not notice any proper guards in place to protect food.

They also claim there was no increase in cleaning until after an announcement of illness was made onboard.

Jessica said: “This was meant to be such a special trip for our family and I can’t believe it turned out the way it did. 

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“Nan’s been struggling with her mobility so we wanted to take a special family holiday together in case this is the last time she can make it abroad.

“We were concerned by some of the precautions in place when we came onboard. 

“We were always very careful when getting food and sanitising but it didn’t prove enough. 

“I’m just thankful it was me who fell ill first rather than nan.

“I’ve never felt so ill, and when I developed chest pains it was a frightening experience. 

“Nan relies on me to an extent when we’re away, but there was no choice but for me to move away from her for fear of passing it on. 

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“When we returned home I thought we had made it, but then nan fell ill the next day.

“I realise that this could have been so much worse but this wasn’t the cruise of a lifetime that we were expecting and it’s one event we won’t be looking back on with fond memories.

“I think the least we can expect is answers and an explanation of what happened.”

Jill and Andrew Bond joined the MV Ventura on May 11 for a two-week cruise around the Canary Islands to mark their 25th wedding anniversary.

They say they received an email from P&O saying there would be a 90-minute delay in setting off from Southampton while staff cleaned the ship.

Days after setting sail, part-time admin assistant Jill, 67, said she started suffering from “constant” sickness and diarrhoea on May 16.

Two days later Andrew, 59, also fell ill, and the couple stayed in their cabin for five days until their symptoms improved. 

Andrew said: “This was meant to be a special holiday for our wedding anniversary but we didn’t expect what followed. 

“The email delaying our departure due to cleaning the ship was a concern, and then when we boarded we had to wait in the lounge with hundreds of others as the cabins weren’t ready.

“We’ve been on cruises in the past but this was definitely the worst in terms of hygiene.

“Jill and I fell ill one after the other, which is just as well, given how ill we were. 

“The first two days of sickness were the absolute worst I’ve ever felt. The symptoms were constant before they calmed down.

“It appeared lots of other people were unwell and it was a real worry when you can see cabins being closed off as the cruise went on, trays left untouched outside doors and lots of food being ordered but not eaten.

“It seems that P&O were aware of problems before our departure and we feel that there are questions to answer in allowing people to board a ship under these circumstances. The whole experience was a nightmare.”

P&O confirmed ‘enhanced’ sanitation procedures had been put into effect following passengers being struck down with gastric illness but didn’t confirm numbers involved.

Personal injury law firm Irwin Mitchell is investigating the cause of the illnesses suffered by the passengers.

Lawyer Jatinder Paul, who is representing the passengers, said: “All of our clients were very much looking forward to their cruise but their first-hand accounts regarding their illness and the impact it had on them all are concerning.

“What’s even more worrying is that after their holidays, other cruise passengers are said to have being struck down with similar symptoms and this reflects the growing number of passengers we’re now hearing from.

“Norovirus is a particularly unpleasant illness and can be very serious in some cases. 

“In this latest outbreak, reports speak of some on board being taken to hospital in Spain with sepsis and kidney failure.

“We’re under no illusions about how serious these cases can be and we’re now investigating further to secure our clients the answers they deserve on how they came to fall so ill.”

A P&O spokesperson said: "Whilst we do not comment on individual cases we are aware that some guests have unfortunately reported gastrointestinal symptoms recently. 

"Gastrointestinal related illnesses are very common in England and Wales and predominantly spread by person to person transmission in environments such as hotels, schools and restaurants. 

"We work with global, national and regional public health authorities on proven protocols across our ships in order to protect the health and wellbeing of all on board."