Apparently hantavirus outbreak kills 3, sickens at least 3 more on cruise ship, health officials say

Cape Town, South Africa – A suspected outbreak of a rare hantavirus on a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean has killed three people, including an elderly couple, and sickened three others, the World Health Organization and South Africa’s Department of Health said on Sunday.

In a statement sent by the Associated Press, the WHO said that it is still under investigation but that at least one case of hantavirus has been confirmed. One of the patients is in critical condition in a South African hospital, UN health officials said, and they were working with authorities to evacuate two others with symptoms from the ship.

The Dutch Foreign Ministry told French news agency AFP that it is “actively looking into the possibility of medically evacuating a few people from the ship.”

“If this is possible, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will coordinate it,” said the spokesperson.

The Dutch company that owns the ship said that it is sitting off the coast of Cape Verde, which is an island country on the west coast of Africa, and the local authorities are helping but have not allowed anyone to disembark. It said the two sick people on board who needed emergency help were members of the crew.

WHO regional director for Europe, Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge, in a statement on Monday said, “The risk to the wider community remains low. There is no need for fear or travel restrictions,” according to the Reuters news agency.

Reuters reports that health officials in Cape Verdi said on Monday that the situation is under control and there is no danger to people on the ground, but they will not allow the ship to stop at the port of its capital, Praia.

Hantaviruses, found worldwide, are a family of viruses that are spread primarily through contact with the urine or feces of infected rodents such as rats and mice. They got attention after the late actor Gene Hackman’s wife, Betsy Arakawa, died of a hantavirus infection New Mexico last year.

Hackman died a week later at their home of a heart attack.

How can hantaviruses kill

Hantaviruses cause two serious syndromes, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a serious disease that affects the lungs, and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome, a serious disease that affects the kidneys.

Although rare, the WHO said that hantavirus infections can spread between people. There is no specific treatment or cure, but early medical care can increase the chances of survival.

“WHO is aware of and supports the public health incident involving a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean,” the agency said. “Detailed investigations are ongoing, including laboratory tests, and epidemiological investigations. Medical care and support are being provided to passengers and crew. Viral sequencing is also ongoing.”

South Africa’s Ministry of Health said the ship, the Dutch-flagged MV Hondius, left Argentina three weeks ago for a trip that included visits to Antarctica, the Falkland Islands and other places. It was because it finally headed for the Canary Islands of Spain on the other side of the Atlantic.

The victims have been identified

The first victim was a 70-year-old man who died on board the ship and his body was removed from the British territory of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic, the South African Department of Health said in a statement. The man’s wife collapsed at the airport in South Africa while trying to take a flight to her home country in the Netherlands, the ministry said. He died at a nearby hospital.

A spokesman for the Dutch Foreign Ministry confirmed to Reuters that two Dutch passengers had died but did not provide details.

The Ministry has identified the patient at the Johannesburg hospital as British. It said that the person fell ill near Ascension Island, another remote island in the Atlantic, after the ship left Saint Helena, and was taken from there to South Africa.

About 150 tourists were on board when the disease broke out, said the South African Department of Health. Several online travelers say the Hondius, described as a professional polar cruise ship, usually travels with a crew of about 70.

Oceanwide Expeditions, which is the company that manages the trip, said that the body of the third victim was on the ship in Cape Verde and the most important thing is to ensure that the two workers who were sick get medical help.

“Local health authorities have visited the ship to check the condition of the two people with symptoms,” the company said. “They are yet to make a decision about the transfer of these people to health care facilities in Cape Verde.”

The WHO said it was working with national authorities and the ship’s crew to carry out a “comprehensive assessment of the public health risk” and provide support to those still traveling.

Meanwhile, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases of South Africa has been conducting contact tracing in the Johannesburg region to identify whether other people have been exposed to infected passengers in South Africa.