KLM Flight Attendant Hospitalized With Suspected Hantavirus After Contact With Infected Cruise Passenger

A KLM flight attendant from Haarlem has been hospitalized in isolation at Amsterdam UMC with mild symptoms after brief contact with a 69-year-old Dutch woman who later died of hantavirus. The woman had attempted to board KLM flight KL592 at Johannesburg’s O.R. Tambo International Airport on April 25 but was removed by crew because she was too ill to fly.

She died the next day in a Johannesburg hospital. The Dutch Ministry of Public Health confirmed the attendant is being tested for hantavirus. “Due to the passenger’s medical condition at the time, the crew decided not to allow the passenger to travel on the flight,” a KLM spokesperson said.

The woman’s 70-year-old husband was among the three fatalities linked to the outbreak aboard the MV Hondius. The expedition cruise ship departed from Argentina weeks earlier. Health officials believe the first case was likely contracted before boarding, possibly in Patagonia or Ushuaia.

A British passenger remains in intensive care in Johannesburg after falling ill following the ship’s departure from Saint Helena, though the World Health Organization said his condition is improving.

The World Health Organization reported eight hantavirus cases linked to the ship, with five confirmed and three suspected as of Thursday. The confirmed cases involve the Andes strain, the only known hantavirus capable of limited human-to-human transmission, though experts stress this is extremely rare and typically requires prolonged close contact.

No specific antiviral treatment exists, with care focused on early intensive supportive measures. A British crew member was evacuated to Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands. Two infected patients are in isolation in Dutch hospitals. The MV Hondius, operated by Oceanwide Expeditions, is currently en route from Cape Verde to Tenerife in the Canary Islands after Spanish authorities agreed to accept the vessel following initial refusal by local officials over safety concerns.

The journey is expected to take roughly three and a half days.

“Given the incubation period of the Andes virus, which can be up to six weeks, it's possible that more cases may be reported. French authorities are monitoring a French national who traveled on the Airlink commercial flight that carried the Dutch woman from Saint Helena to Johannesburg. That flight had 82 passengers and six crew. The United States is among a dozen countries tracking former passengers. Health officials in Arizona, California, Georgia, Texas and Virginia said they are monitoring residents who returned from the cruise, none of whom have reported symptoms. Canadian officials reported two passengers from the ship are now in Ontario. Argentinian officials are tracing passengers’ movements through Patagonia and Ushuaia. The CDC has coordinated with domestic and international partners, providing health guidance to American passengers through the State Department and preparing medical support for repatriation. Officials across agencies have stated the risk to the public remains low because hantavirus is not spread by people without symptoms and requires close contact for transmission.”

The World Health Organization emphasized at a Thursday press briefing that the outbreak is not the start of a Covid-like pandemic because hantavirus spreads differently. Maria Van Kerkhove, acting director of the department of epidemic and pandemic threat, and other officials said a large epidemic is not anticipated.

Sequencing is underway to confirm the virus identity, with the working assumption that it is the Andes strain. The ship carried roughly 150 passengers and crew. While rodents were not reported aboard, officials noted the possibility cannot be ruled out.

Some experts have pointed to the potential for both rodent exposure and limited human-to-human transmission in the close quarters of a cruise ship. The vessel is now anchored off Cabo Verde as further evacuations are planned. Health authorities continue to monitor for additional cases given the incubation period.

The MV Hondius remains under strict health protocols as it heads toward Tenerife, where Spanish officials invoked their responsibility to assist those on board.