WHO Confirms Five Hantavirus Cases, Including Three Deaths, On MV Hondius Cruise

A rare hantavirus outbreak aboard the Dutch-flagged expedition ship MV Hondius has triggered a global effort to trace passengers who disembarked before the outbreak was detected, with the World Health Organization saying five cases had been confirmed including three deaths.

“WHO says suspected hantavirus cluster 'is not the start of a COVID pandemic' There are 12 suspected cases so far”

ABC News

The BBC reported that the luxury cruise, Oceanwide Expeditions, said 114 guests and 61 crew members from 22 countries boarded the vessel, while 32 guests disembarked at St Helena on 24 April.

ABC News

The BBC also said the ship began its journey on 1 April in Ushuaia, Argentina, and was expected to arrive in Spain's Canary Islands on 10 May, as health authorities in at least 12 countries monitored citizens who were on the ship or had returned home.

In the United States, the NBC News account said the MV Hondius was expected to arrive in Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands on Sunday, and that a team from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would meet the American passengers there.

NBC News added that the 17 American passengers would be received at the National Quarantine Unit on the University of Nebraska Medical Center campus in Omaha and monitored daily, even though they were in good health and asymptomatic.

California health officials said there are no known city residents aboard the cruise ship at the center of the outbreak, while California officials monitor one returned resident for possible exposure and said the risk to the public remains “extremely low.”

Dr. Erica Pan, California’s state public health officer and public health director, said in a statement, “Unlike influenza and COVID-19, years of experience in South America have shown that this Andes hantavirus rarely spreads between people.”

BBC

In Texas, Texas Health and Human Services said two Texas residents were being monitored after the outbreak occurred aboard the MV Hondius, and that both people currently have no symptoms and reported having no contact with sick people while aboard the ship.

WOAI quoted Jay Bhattacharya, National Institutes of Health Director, saying, “Hantavirus is not spread by people without symptoms,” and added that transmission requires close contact.

The BBC also reported that one expert told the BBC the outbreak response has been “highly chaotic and uncoordinated” while noting there was little general risk to the public.

NBC News described the Nebraska quarantine plan as the 17 American passengers being assessed at the National Quarantine Unit and moved to the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit if anyone is diagnosed, with Dr. Angela Hewlett saying the Biocontainment Unit treats patients in sterile environments with HEPA filtration and specialized sterilization “autoclaves.”

“Remote expedition cruises to places like Antarctica and the Arctic are booming as affluent travelers increasingly seek out isolated, experience-driven destinations far from traditional tourism infrastructure”

CNBC

NBC News also reported that the World Health Organization said six confirmed cases of the Andes hantavirus had been confirmed and two cases were probable, and that two people with confirmed cases and one person with a probable case had died.

In Spain, Forbes reported that Spanish health official Javier Padilla said a 32-year-old woman in Alicante who shared an airplane with an MV Hondius passenger confirmed to have hantavirus was showing symptoms consistent with the disease, bringing the total number of confirmed and suspected cases to nine.

Forbes further said Canary Islands President Fernando Clavijo stated the MV Hondius will not be allowed to dock when it arrives in Tenerife and will instead anchor off shore, with passengers taken to land via small boat only when the evacuation plane is already on the tarmac.

Meanwhile, the BBC said the incubation period can be up to six weeks and that it is possible more cases may be reported, as the WHO said the outbreak response involves tracing and monitoring people who had close contact since disembarking.