Hantavirus (Image: Getty)
Hantavirus cases have emerged across 13 nations spanning four continents as fears over the rat virus’s spread grow. The outbreak has been linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship after passengers travelling from Argentina began falling ill, with three deaths now reported.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) confirmed two British nationals have contracted hantavirus while revealing “an additional suspected case of a British national on Tristan da Cunha”. The suspected case remains on the remote South Atlantic island, while the two confirmed British patients are being treated in hospitals in the Netherlands and South Africa. When the MV Hondius arrived at St Helena on April 24, 29 passengers disembarked, including seven British travellers. Among them was a Dutch woman who later became ill during onward travel and died. Health authorities first confirmed a hantavirus infection in a passenger on May 2, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The Hantavirus outbreak has now impacted 13 countries (Image: openstreetmap)
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Officials in countries including South Africa, Singapore and the Netherlands are now tracing passengers who travelled aboard the vessel as the outbreak spreads across 13 countries.
The WHO said the first two confirmed cases involved a Dutch couple who had travelled through Argentina, Chile and Uruguay before boarding the ship.
According to the UKHSA, the vessel is expected to arrive in Tenerife on Sunday based on the latest information from Spanish health authorities.
The UKHSA said no British passengers currently aboard the vessel are displaying symptoms, though they remain under careful observation.
A UKHSA statement said: “UK Government staff will be on the ground ready to support the British nationals disembarking.
“British passengers and ship crew not displaying any symptoms of hantavirus will be escorted by UK Government staff to an airport and given free passage back to the UK.”
Repatriated Brits arrive by coach at Arrowe Park Hospital in Wirral, Merseyside (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Full list of 13 countries hit by cruise ship-linked hantavirus outbreak
The Dutch cruise ship m/v Hondius is anchored in the port of Tenerife (Image: ANP/Shutterstock)
Foreign Office staff and UKHSA officials are continuing to assist passengers, while a specially arranged repatriation flight is being organised for travellers and crew members.
Every British passenger and crew member from the vessel will also be required to self-isolate for 45 days after returning to the UK under close supervision from health officials.
The UKHSA added: “Follow-up is already under way for individuals who may have been in contact with cases and have since returned to the UK or are in UK Overseas Territories.”
Officials confirmed two British nationals are currently isolating at home in the UK after leaving the vessel at St Helena and travelling back via Johannesburg.
In total, four British citizens remain on remote South Atlantic islands, while a seventh Briton has been identified overseas.
Altogether, 19 UK nationals were registered as passengers aboard the MV Hondius alongside four British crew members during the voyage from Argentina to Cape Verde.
Passengers evacuated from the MV Hondius board military buses after arriving in Tenerife (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
The WHO said the threat to the wider public remains minimal because hantavirus is usually spread through inhalation of contaminated rodent waste and only rarely spreads from person to person.
“We believe this will be a limited outbreak if the public health measures are implemented and solidarity is shown across all countries,” said Dr Abdirahman Mahamud, the WHO’s alert and response director.
