© CDC Hantavirus in an enlarged microscope image. Hantavirus outbreak in the Atlantic: the disease was detected in another passenger Healthcare
Today it became known that another passenger on the cruise ship on which an outbreak of hantavirus was recorded has become infected with this deadly disease. An epidemic on board the Hondius killed three people. The World Health Organization (WHO) is currently coordinating international efforts to contain the hantavirus outbreak and ensure the safety of passengers on the plane.
A man diagnosed with hantavirus is being treated in a Zurich hospital after returning to Switzerland. “In accordance with the International Health Regulations, WHO is collaborating with the countries involved to trace contacts of cases. We are monitoring those potentially exposed and are committed to limiting the further spread of the disease,” the World Health Organization said on social media X. As of Wednesday, three of the ship’s 147 passengers had died since it departed Argentina across the Atlantic Ocean to its current anchorage off the coast of Cape Verde, according to WHO. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Wednesday morning that three passengers “have just been evacuated” from the ship and are heading to the Netherlands for treatment. The overall risk to public health remains low,” he stressed.
The history of the liner
The Hondius was built in Croatia and launched in June 2018. The length of the vessel is about 108 meters; it is registered with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) under identification number 9818709. The vessel can accommodate 196 passengers and 72 crew members. It is named after the 17th-century map publisher and engraver Jodocus Hondius. The expedition ship’s maiden voyage took place in 2019: it arrived from Vlissingen in the Netherlands to the volcanic island of Jan Mayen, and then to Svalbard in the Arctic. The World Health Organization believes that all those sick with hantavirus were infected before boarding. Eight cases of infection have been reported so far. Laboratory tests confirmed that at least three of them involve Andean hantavirus. On Tuesday, WHO said one case was in intensive care in South Africa, although his condition was “improving.” South Africa’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases and Geneva University Hospitals were involved in the work to identify the virus. WHO noted that additional support was provided by the Institut Pasteur in Dakar and the National Directorate of Laboratories and Institutes of Health of Argentina.
Patient care is a “top priority”
“WHO will continue to work with countries to ensure that patients, those in contact with them, passengers and crew have the information and support they need to keep them safe and prevent the spread of infection,” the organization said. At a press conference on Tuesday, WHO officials stressed that at the time “the highest priority the priority” was to evacuate the two sick passengers still on board “to ensure they receive the medical care they need.” As noted above, those infected were evacuated today. As agency spokeswoman Dr. Maria van Kerkhove explained, once the ship arrives in the Canary Islands, Spanish authorities will conduct a full epidemiological investigation and complete disinfection of the ship, and then assess the risk to passengers remaining on board. “We have received reports from quite a large number of people on the ship. We just want you to know that we work with the ship’s operators. We cooperate with the countries you come from. We hear you. We know you are scared,” Dr van Kerkhove said. As a precaution, passengers have been asked to remain in their cabins while disinfection and other public health measures take place.