The WHO says there is no current sign of a larger hantavirus outbreak linked to the MV Hondius, though more confirmed cases may appear.
The World Health Organization says there is currently “no sign” of a larger hantavirus outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship, even as health authorities continue to monitor passengers, crew and close contacts across several countries.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a Tuesday press conference in Madrid that the picture could still change. “Given the long incubation period of the virus, it's possible we might see more cases in the coming weeks,” he said, adding that the agency’s work to contain the outbreak “is not over.”
The update follows the evacuation of the final passengers from the disease-stricken vessel. The MV Hondius left Tenerife on Monday and is sailing toward Rotterdam, while two flights carrying the last 28 passengers landed Tuesday in nearby Eindhoven.
Three people have died after travelling on the ship. A French national and a Spaniard who had previously returned home have tested positive. The WHO has confirmed nine cases, with two others suspected.
The French patient is in intensive care in Paris, where doctors have described her illness as “the most severe form” of the disease and are treating her with an artificial lung. Spanish authorities said one of 14 Spaniards quarantining in Madrid after evacuation tested positive and had a low-grade fever and mild respiratory symptoms but was stable.
In the Netherlands, 12 employees at a hospital in Nijmegen are in quarantine as a precaution after possible exposure while treating one evacuated passenger. The hospital said the workers had not followed strict protocols while handling the patient’s blood and urine samples.
Hantaviruses are usually carried by rodents. The WHO believes some passengers may have contracted the Andes strain in South America, and human-to-human transmission of that strain is possible. Symptoms can include fever, severe fatigue, muscle aches, stomach pain, vomiting, diarrhoea and shortness of breath.
Authorities in several countries are still tracing and testing possible cases. France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, said the situation in France was “under control,” while French health officials said four repatriated citizens had tested negative and 22 contact cases were being isolated in hospital for at least two weeks. Two British nationals with confirmed cases are being treated in the Netherlands and South Africa.
The Dutch-flagged ship is expected to reach Rotterdam provisionally on the evening of 17 May after a six-day voyage. Oceanwide Expeditions said procedures on arrival were still being discussed, but the vessel will be sanitized.
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