Dakar, 26 February 2024 (dpa/MIA) — More than 3,000 people are stranded on board a cruise ship off the East African island of Mauritius due to a suspected cholera outbreak.

Following a series of gastrointestinal illnesses on board the Norwegian Dawn, the authorities in Mauritius refused to allow the ship to dock in the harbour of the capital Port Louis on Sunday, after the French island of La Réunion had already turned the ship away.

Southern Africa is currently experiencing one of the worst cholera outbreaks in years.

The majority of the 2,184 passengers were supposed to start their journey home on Sunday. At the same time, 2,279 new travellers were originally due to board in Port Louis, the port authority said. There are also 1,026 crew members on the ship.

Employees of the Ministry of Health took samples from around 15 people on board on Sunday morning. The results of the investigation are expected on Tuesday.

According to the authorities, at least 14 passengers and one crew member are suffering from diarrhoea and vomiting. They have been isolated in their rooms.

The US company Norwegian Cruise Line said that a small number of passengers on the Norwegian Dawn had experienced mild symptoms of stomach illness on the twelve-day voyage from South Africa.

"Due to additional testing being required by local authorities before being allowed entry, the government of Mauritius has delayed disembarkation for the current cruise and embarkation for the next cruise by two days to Feb. 27, 2024," a statement from the company said.

In a letter dated Sunday, which was made available to dpa, the captain informed passengers that they would not be leaving the ship in Port Louis for the time being.

Hygiene measures on board have been increased and all necessary measures are being taken to protect guests, crew and destinations, the company added.

According to the Miami-headquartered company, the Norwegian Dawn, which was built in 2002 at the German Meyer shipyard in Papenburg on Germany's North Sea coast, has space for up to 2,340 guests and 1,032 crew members on board.

The vessel set off from South Africa on February 13 on its journey via Madagascar to La Réunion and Mauritius. The Norwegian Dawn was then due to return to South Africa with the new passengers.

On Friday, the authorities on the French island of La Réunion refused to allow the ship to dock due to the gastrointestinal illnesses. Both the French government and the island's regional health authority considered the health situation on board the ship to be unsatisfactory.

The authorities had suggested sending doctors on board and carrying out tests. As a result, the shipping company decided to cancel the planned stopover and continue directly to Mauritius, the island's prefecture explained.

The harbour authority in Mauritius confirmed that the Norwegian Dawn had already reached Mauritius on Saturday evening due to the skipped stop.