The Hantavirus outbreak has now impacted 13 countries after the MV Hondius cruise ship departed a southern Argentinian city.
Three British nationals have also been diagnosed with suspected Hantavirus linked to the cruise ship outbreak, health officials have said. Today (May 8), the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has confirmed a third British person was diagnosed on Tristan da Cunha island.
The patient remains on the remote South Atlantic island. The other two British nationals remain in hospital in the Netherlands and South Africa.
The ship’s operator confirmed on Thursday that a total of 30 passengers — including a deceased Dutch man and his wife — disembarked at St. Helena. The Dutch Foreign Ministry has put the figure at approximately 40. The company had not previously made public that dozens more passengers left the vessel on 24 April. It was not until 2 May that health authorities first confirmed hantavirus in a passenger aboard the ship, according to the WHO.
Authorities in nations including South Africa, Singapore and the Netherlands are now tracking down passengers who were on board the vessel. The Dutch couple who represented the first two cases had travelled through Argentina, Chile and Uruguay before boarding the ship, according to the WHO.
The WHO also said that the risk to the general public remains low. Hantavirus is typically contracted through breathing in contaminated rodent droppings and does not spread easily between humans.
“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, on Thursday.
The UKHSA said none of the British citizens on board the ship, which is now travelling to Tenerife, is currently reporting symptoms but they are being closely monitored.
A statement said the ship is expected to dock in Tenerife on Sunday, according to the latest updates from the Spanish health ministry.
The UKHSA added: “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.”
