Six People Leave Hospital After Hantavirus Isolation as 22 Complete 72-Hour Quarantine

Six people evacuated to the UK from a cruise ship after a hantavirus outbreak are returning home or to suitable accommodation to complete a 45-day isolation period. They have been isolating in Arrowe Park Hospital in Wirral for 72 hours after being removed from the ship and have tested negative for the virus.

Their onward travel will be managed with public health protections in place at every stage, the UK Health Security Agency said. A small number of individuals who had been isolating at home or elsewhere in England have now been transferred to Arrowe Park Hospital for assessment, a joint statement from health authorities said.

In total, 22 passengers and crew had been isolating at the Merseyside hospital. The rest will remain but are asymptomatic and have tested negative to the virus.

Health protection teams around the UK will monitor and support the six who have left the facility. Ten other passengers, crew and people linked to them are being brought to the UK from British territories in the south Atlantic, Saint Helena and Ascension Islands, as a precaution.

The UK Health Security Agency said the NHS in England was well equipped to respond if they become unwell. A medic on Ascension Island developed symptoms but samples taken to the UK on 8 May tested negative. Testing is under way to confirm the cause of illness for the person displaying symptoms.

Officials are working with Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office colleagues and leaders on Ascension Island to repatriate British nationals who are currently isolating on the island.

Background on the Outbreak Those isolating in the hospital have been staying in flats, with food and other essentials provided, alongside ongoing care from UKHSA and NHS teams. Public health and infectious disease specialists will assess whether the individuals are able to self-isolate at home or whether another location should be arranged.

A separate British man in his 60s is isolating in a hospital in Milan after travelling on a flight to Johannesburg in late April. He sat a few rows from a Dutch woman who later died of the virus. He has no symptoms and has tested negative but will remain in isolation until 6 June as a precaution.

Since the outbreak three people have died, with two confirmed to have had the virus. The Dutch MV Hondius had 87 passengers and 60 crew members on board when it docked in Spain's Canary Islands last week, according to the ship's operator Oceanwide Expeditions.

The ship began its journey on 1 April in Ushuaia, Argentina. The ship's operator said on Monday that all guests who were still on board when the outbreak was confirmed have now been repatriated to their home countries. The ship is heading to the Netherlands with 25 crew members and two medical professionals on board.