WHO Alert: Three deaths linked to Hantavirus outbreak on cruise ship
The World Health Organization (WHO) is on high alert following a suspected hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship sailing across the Atlantic. Three people have died and several others are sickened, sparking an international investigation into the rare appearance of this virus in a maritime environment.
The health emergency unfolded aboard the MV Hondius, a Dutch-flagged vessel traveling from Argentina toward Cape Verde. According to official statements from the WHO, at least one case of hantavirus has been laboratory-confirmed, while five additional suspected cases are under investigation. Among the victims are a 70-year-old man who died onboard and his 69-year-old wife who passed away later in a South African hospital.
A third passenger, identified as a British national, remains in intensive care in Johannesburg. The ship is currently docked in Praia, Cape Verde, where local and international health authorities are coordinating medical evacuations and conducting epidemiological research. While hantavirus is typically spread through contact with infected rodents and rarely moves from person to person, the scale of this hantavirus outbreak has led to immediate public health risk assessments for all passengers and crew on board
Photo: © WHO / FCTC / Pierre Albouy
