Three dead as hantavirus outbreak hits stranded cruise ship

Three passengers have died and at least two cases of hantavirus have been confirmed aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship, which remains stranded off the coast of Cabo Verde with 149 people on board representing 23 nationalities, according to the World Health Organization. WHO was officially notified on May 2 of a cluster of passengers with severe respiratory illness aboard the vessel, which set sail from Ushuaia, Argentina on April 1 and includes four Canadians who are confirmed safe and uninfected by Global Affairs Canada. Authorities have not yet decided when passengers may disembark, with the ship potentially heading north toward Spain's Canary Islands for further medical screening under WHO and Dutch health supervision. Hantavirus, which is primarily transmitted through contact with the urine, feces or saliva of infected rodents, has been confirmed in two cases with five suspected as of May 4, including the three deaths. One patient remains in critical condition. The cruise ship visited multiple remote locations including mainland Antarctica, South Georgia, Nightingale Island, Tristan da Cunha, Saint Helena and Ascension Island during its voyage, and officials are investigating the extent of passenger contact with local wildlife. Although WHO has been informed there are no rodents on board, limited human-to-human transmission has been documented in previous outbreaks, and authorities are exploring this as a possible explanation for the spread. Despite the deaths, passengers aboard the ship say the situation is calm and being managed effectively. Jordanian YouTuber Kasem Hato told The Globe and Mail that passengers are taking the situation seriously without panic, maintaining physical distancing and wearing masks as a precaution, and that the situation has been significantly overstated from the outside. American travel blogger Jake Rosmarin echoed this sentiment, saying passengers are in good spirits and that Oceanwide Expeditions, the Netherlands-based company operating the cruise, is keeping everyone safe, informed and comfortable. WHO currently assesses the global public health risk from the infections as low.