The illness outbreak that afflicted travelers leaving Reagan National Airport from a medical convention at the National Harbor complex was confirmed as norovirus. Prince George's County officials made the diagnosis of the illness which hit at least 65 people, all at attendance at a medical convention hosted by the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center, part of the new National Harbor development.
The toll of the illness that triggers nausea and vomiting may be greater as travelers may have spread the norovirus in enclosed planes and buses while departing the convention site. Ironically, it could have been the lack of medical precautions by a medical conventioneer that unleashed the outbreak. Proper hand washing can usually prevent such fiascos from occurring in the first place.
Gaylord has already begun decontaminating impacted areas of its hotel/convention center in Oxon Hill, Maryland as the norovirus can attach to surfaces. Other D.C. area hotels that hosted any ill conventioneers will no doubt be forced to do the same.
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Relevant links: Associated Press via WMAR/2, Washington Post
