WHO Reports 12th Hantavirus Case Linked to Cruise Ship

The World Health Organization reported a new hantavirus infection in a Dutch crew member on the MV Hondius, bringing the total to 12 cases. Three deaths have occurred since the outbreak began in early May.

Ghebreyesus, the WHO chief, told a news conference in Geneva on Friday that he urges all countries to monitor the passengers who were on board the MV Hondius cruise ship and “move carefully for the remainder of the quarantine period”. A Dutch crew member had tested positive and was now in isolation.

Dutch authorities also confirmed that the infected crew member had been taken to hospital. “The Andes virus has been detected in one person who was in quarantine in the Netherlands. The patient has since been admitted to the hospital as a precaution and is in isolation,” said the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM).

“More than 600 contacts continue to be followed in 30 countries, and a small number of high-risk contacts are still being located,” Tedros said. The initial cruise ship had departed on April 1 from Ushuaia, Argentina, before heading to Cape Verde and then Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands.

While the WHO is investigating how the virus got on board the ship, it is believed that the first person to contract it could have been exposed to rodents during a bird-watching expedition. The Andes strain is the only known strain capable of spreading from human to human.