Health officials ‘work out’ cause of deadly hantavirus cruise ship outbreak

Investigators think they've identified the likely source of the hantavirus cruise ship outbreak aboard MV Hondius.

Three passengers have died and several others fell ill during the vessel’s journey which ended in Cape Verde on 3 May.

Hantavirus is typically spread through contact with rodent urine, droppings or saliva, often when contaminated particles become airborne and are inhaled.

Symptoms can begin like the flu but can rapidly progress into severe respiratory illness with up to a 40 percent chance of death.

Health officials now believe, however, that a Dutch couple caught the virus during a bird-watching trip in Argentina.

They say the couple may have been exposed to infected rodents while visiting a landfill site near Ushuaia in mid-March. They later boarded the expedition cruise ship on 20 March.

The latest updates on the hantavirus outbreak (LADbible/Getty Stock Images)

The 70-year-old Dutch man became sick on 6 April and died on the ship five days later.

His wife, who also became ill onboard, later flew to South Africa with her husband’s body and died in a Johannesburg hospital on 25 April.

Since a third passenger died on 2 May, the outbreak has spread to Europe, with eight more passengers and crew reporting symptoms.

British crew member evacuated from ship

(AP Photo/Misper Apawu)

The WHO has confirmed that a British crew member with suspected hantavirus has been medically evacuated from the cruise ship linked to the outbreak.

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the WHO, said on X: “Three suspected hantavirus case patients have just been evacuated from the ship and are on their way to receive medical care in the Netherlands in co-ordination with WHO, the ship’s operator and national authorities from Cabo Verde, the United Kingdom, Spain and the Netherlands.

“WHO continues to work with the ship’s operators to closely monitor the health of passengers and crew, working with countries to support appropriate medical follow-up and evacuation where needed.

“Monitoring and follow-up for passengers on board and for those who have already disembarked has been initiated in collaboration with the ship’s operators and national health authorities.

“At this stage, the overall public health risk remains low.”

The symptoms of hantavirus

Hantavirus can cause two life-threatening syndromes, according to the WHO: hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS) and haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS).

The early symptoms of HCPS, which attacks the lungs, start one to eight weeks after infection, and include:

• Fatigue
• Fever
• Muscles aches
• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Chills
• Nausea and vomiting
• Diarrhoea

Later symptoms include:

• Coughing
• Shortness of breath
• Tightness in the chest

Early symptoms of HFRS, which affects the kidneys, start one to two weeks after infection, and include:

• Intense headaches
• Back pain
• Abdominal pain
• Fever/chills
• Nausea
• Blurred vision

Later symptoms include:

• Low blood pressure
• Internal bleeding
• Acute kidney failure