The appearance of a new case of hantavirus in the United States has once again put the spotlight on the outbreak detected on the MV Hondius, the cruise ship investigated since early May by the World Health Organization (WHO). Although health organizations continue to insist that the risk to the general population is low, various countries maintain active monitoring and surveillance systems for passengers and contacts related to the vessel.
The WHO continues to consider that the outbreak is associated with a very specific environment of prolonged coexistence and closed spaces within the ship. The organization also maintains that transmission between people remains infrequent and mainly linked to the Andes variant of hantavirus.
This is the current status of the main known cases related to the MV Hondius, country by country.
Netherlands: the first two deaths
The first two cases related to the outbreak were a Dutch couple who had previously traveled through South America before boarding the cruise ship. The first deceased was a 70-year-old man who started with mild symptoms during the trip and subsequently developed severe respiratory distress. He died on board the ship on April 11, according to the epidemiological reconstruction disseminated by the WHO.
His partner, a 69-year-old woman, was later evacuated and died days later in South Africa. PCR tests later confirmed the infection by hantavirus Andes. The WHO considers that both could have been infected before boarding the cruise ship.
South Africa: a British patient remains hospitalized
One of the most serious cases remains that of a British citizen evacuated from the ship to South Africa. The passenger initially went to the cruise ship's medical service with fever, respiratory symptoms, and signs of pneumonia. After his condition worsened, he was transferred by air and remains hospitalized in an Intensive Care Unit. PCR tests confirmed the hantavirus infection, while epidemiological and virus sequencing analyses continue.
Germany: one passenger deceased and another case under surveillance
The WHO also confirmed the death of a German passenger who developed symptoms compatible with pneumonia and passed away on May 2. Additionally, another German citizen related to the cruise ship remains under health surveillance after having been preventively evacuated during the operation deployed in Tenerife.
Switzerland: one confirmed positive and preventive isolation
Swiss health authorities confirmed last week a positive case in a passenger who had previously disembarked the MV Hondius. The patient subsequently went to a hospital in Zurich after receiving information about the outbreak detected on the cruise ship. The virus was confirmed as Andes hantavirus by specialized laboratories in South Africa and Switzerland. His partner, who was also traveling on the ship, remains isolated, although without symptoms.
United Kingdom: new suspected cases under investigation
United Kingdom maintains several epidemiological follow-ups related to the cruise ship active. Reuters reported, citing the British health agency UKHSA, a new suspected case detected in Tristan da Cunha, a remote British territory in the South Atlantic. British authorities insist that it is currently a case under investigation and pending definitive confirmation through laboratory tests. In addition, several British citizens continue to carry out preventive isolation and symptom monitoring after leaving the ship.
Spain: preventive monitoring at Gómez Ulla
Spain activated a broad health operation in Tenerife over the weekend to manage the disembarkation and repatriation of passengers. Some of the Spanish travelers were subsequently transferred to the Gómez Ulla Hospital in Madrid, where they remain under preventive epidemiological surveillance. The Ministry of Health has insisted that the evacuated passengers were asymptomatic at the time of disembarkation and maintains that there is no risk to the general population.
United States: a new case related to the cruise ship
US authorities are now investigating a new case linked to the MV Hondius, according to the latest information released by international media and health organizations. For the moment, extensive clinical details about the patient have not been disclosed, nor has their exact condition been publicly confirmed. Investigations are focused on reconstructing possible contacts and determining the epidemiological relationship with the cruise ship outbreak.
What the WHO says
The WHO maintains that the outbreak should not be interpreted as a situation comparable to the covid-19 pandemic. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the organization's director-general, has reiterated that human-to-human transmission of the Andes hantavirus remains rare and normally requires close and prolonged contact.
Maria Van Kerkhove, technical lead for epidemics at the WHO, has also insisted that the outbreak is limited to a very specific context of cohabitation within the ship and that there is no evidence of sustained community transmission.
While investigations continue, different countries maintain active monitoring protocols because the incubation period for hantavirus can last up to six weeks.