The cruise-ship MSC Orchesta arrived in the Spanish port of Valencia on Tuesday, Oct. 9, 2012 after four cases of bacterial meningitis had been reported among members of its crew.
The ship, which has 2,800 passengers onboard arrived after sailing from the Italian port of Liverno.
The four infected crew members, two of whom are said to be in a serious condition, are in hospital, while the passengers and remaining crew have all been prescribed antibiotics as a precautionary measure.
The company MSC, which runs the ship has assured passengers that there is no risk to their health given that those infected were not in contact with passengers and added that nobody else has shown any symptoms of the potentially fatal disease. "No passaneger and no member of the crew has shown and symptoms of meningitis," said the statement published by MSC. The Orchestra is now expected to continue with its itinerary, calling in at Ibiza, Tuniz, Catalia and Naples.