Shocking! Hantavirus outbreak reported on a cruise ship enroute to West African coast

Six years later when the world has almost forgotten about the sheer tragedy COVID 19 pandemic had brought upon us, a new virus in the market is catching up on the trend. A Hantavirus outbreak aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship has recently been reported and the World Health Organisation has confirmed it to be a serious infectious and deadly disease.

What is Hantavirus? WHO confirms outbreak on a cruise ship MV Hondius

The World Health Organization on Wednesday shared on social media that around eight cases linked to a Hantavirus outbreak have been identified aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship. The outbreak has already claimed three lives, while at least four to five other people have fallen ill. The ship was enroute to Africa from Argentina when the disease seems to have been confirmed. 

Taking to X, the WHO officials wrote, “Swiss authorities have confirmed a case of #hantavirus identified in a passenger from the MV Hondius cruise ship. He had responded to an email from the ship’s operator informing the passengers of the health event, and presented himself to a hospital in Zurich, Switzerland, and is receiving care.”

Adding more to the statement the officials wrote, “The type of virus in this outbreak has been confirmed as Andes hantavirus by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases @nicd_sa, South Africa and the Geneva University Hospitals @hug_ge, Switzerland. The support of the Institut Pasteur de Dakar @PasteurDakar, Senegal and the Administración Nacional de Laboratorios e Institutos de Salud @ANLIS_Malbran, Argentina has also been critical in responding to this event.”

Confirming the case the post read, “As of 6 May, there are 8 cases, 3 of whom are confirmed as hantavirus by laboratory testing.”

As for the passengers aboard, South African health authorities earlier confirmed that two passengers were removed from the ship who had tested positive for the Andes strain. One of them, a British man, remains in intensive care at a South African hospital. The second confirmed case, a Dutch woman, died in South Africa.

How does it spread and what precautions to take?

Reports suggest that Hantavirus mainly spreads through contact with rodents, rodent urine, saliva or droppings.  However, the Andes strain is unusual as it can also spread between humans through close and prolonged contact.  

Some of the key precautions from this virus include wearing gloves and masks during cleaning, using wet cleaning methods (not sweeping/vacuuming), and sealing homes against rodents.

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