A360
Key Takeaways✦ Atlas AI
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Three deaths linked to hantavirus.
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Outbreak occurred on MV Hondius.
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WHO coordinating international response.
Atlas AI
The World Health Organization (WHO) said three people who were aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship have died from suspected hantavirus infections.
In a statement issued Sunday, the WHO said one case was confirmed by laboratory testing and five additional cases were considered suspected. Of the six people believed to be infected, three have died and one person remains in intensive care in South Africa.
The MV Hondius was carrying about 150 passengers and departed Ushuaia, Argentina, about three weeks ago on a voyage to the Canary Islands. The itinerary included stops in Antarctica, the Falkland Islands and St. Helena.
South African health authorities said passengers from the ship were receiving medical care for severe acute respiratory infections. A 70-year-old male passenger died in St. Helena, according to South African officials. His 69-year-old wife later died in South Africa. A British national also died in South Africa; his laboratory test results were positive for hantavirus.
Hantavirus is a rare family of viruses typically carried by rodents and is often transmitted to humans by inhaling particles from dried rodent droppings or urine. The Andes virus, found in South America, is the only hantavirus documented to spread from person to person, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Experts said hantavirus is not typically associated with cruise ships. Possible sources include exposure to rodent droppings on the vessel or at a port of call. Given the ship’s South American itinerary, health authorities are also assessing whether person-to-person transmission may have occurred.
The WHO said it is coordinating a multicountry response with affected countries and islands to limit further spread.
