TORONTO – British Columbia’s government said on May 16 one Canadian tested positive for hantavirus after leaving a luxury cruise ship hit by an outbreak of the Andes strain of the virus.
The individual, who was tested at a hospital in Victoria, British Columbia on Vancouver Island, after developing mild symptoms, is one of four Canadians isolating on the island after leaving the MV Hondius, a cruise ship that departed Argentina on a polar expedition on April 1.
The group included two couples – one from Yukon and another from B.C. The individual who tested positive is from Yukon, officials said.
The Yukon couple is being tested in B.C. because that service is unavailable in the northern territory, said B.C. provincial health officer Bonnie Henry.
She said the four people had not come in contact with the public when they were transferred from their flight to Victoria. The person who tested positive is in stable condition, she said.
The Andes strain of hantavirus, identified in the outbreak on the cruise ship, can cause severe lung illness that can be fatal in up to 50 per cent of cases, according to the World Health Organization.
Hantaviruses are a group of viruses that are usually spread by rodents, but in rare cases can be transmitted person to person. Health authorities have said the risk of the virus spreading is low. REUTERS
