TRACY, CA - Prison officials said Thursday they now believe the so-called cruise ship virus may have anchored at Tracy's Deuel Vocational Institution, causing a growing number of inmates and a handful of staffers to double over in agony.

The norovirus, a menacing flu that leaves its victims with symptoms of nausea, vomiting and diarrhea for a day or two, has spread to at least four other prisons, said Terry Thornton, a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation spokeswoman.
Deuel first noticed a sizable group of inmates complaining of illness Tuesday.

By Thursday afternoon, 361 inmates and eight prison employees had gotten sick. Five inmates had symptoms so severe they were sent to hospitals for treatment, Thornton said.

"It's very puzzling, actually," she said. "The number of inmates coming to sick call has decreased but not stopped."

Four other prisons on Thursday reported cases of the apparent flu. Deuel officials asked San Joaquin County Public Health Services to help them manage the epidemic. Dale Bishop, a Public Health physician, said they were able to rule out food poisoning, but they haven't received back the results of stool tests confirming norovirus.

The symptoms sounded like norovirus, and that's how officials are treating it, Bishop said. A number of sources throughout the state have reported the virus recently.

It is spread through water and touching contaminated surfaces.

"Hopefully, we've peaked," said Mike Quagliar, a Deuel spokesman. "We're hoping - fingers crossed - we're on the downside here."