Norwalk virus breaks into a Vegas jail

Talk about a jail break out.

At least 150 inmates and seven guards in a Las Vegas county jail got sick with the norovirus, a gastrointestinal infection that causes diasshea, vomiting and cramps.

Also called the Norwalk virus, infamous for causing a cruise ship-wide quarantine two years ago, the virus is passed in the stool of infected persons, either by swallowing stool-contaminated food or water, or from eating infected raw oysters.

Many sickened inmates were kitchen workers, leading officials to think the virus might have spread by contaminated food or trays. District epidemiologist Brian Labus said the outbreak may be related to an ongoing norovirus wave in the Las Vegas area that he estimated had sickened thousands of people since December.

“There won’t be any deaths,” Labus said of the jail outbreak. “It’s going to make people feel miserable for a couple of days, but they will recover after it runs its course.”

Now that’s an “break out” that an inmate wouldn’t want to get caught with.

[Source: LasVegas Sun; image]

What’s a Norwalk virus? Here.

Tags: Norwalk virus, gastrointestinal, infection, virus, viral disease, norovirus, illness, oysters, diarrhea