An outbreak of severe acute respiratory illness aboard a cruise ship in the Atlantic has left at least two people dead, with a third in intensive care in Johannesburg, South Africa’s health ministry said on Sunday. The outbreak occurred on the MV Hondius, which was travelling from Ushuaia in Argentina to Cape Verde.
The patient being treated in Johannesburg tested positive for a hantavirus, a family of viruses that can cause haemorrhagic fever, South African spokesperson Foster Mohale said. Hantaviruses are spread by rodents, particularly through contact with their urine, droppings and saliva, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said in a statement issued in Geneva that it is aware of the cases of severe acute respiratory illness on a cruise ship sailing in the Atlantic. Investigations and a co-ordinated international public health response are under way, and further information will be shared as it becomes available.
A source close to the case, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the provisional death toll had reached three, including a Dutch couple. The first person to develop symptoms was a 70-year-old passenger who died on board the ship. His body is currently on the island of Saint Helena, a British territory in the South Atlantic, the South African spokesperson said.
His 69-year-old wife also fell ill on board and was evacuated to South Africa, where she died in a Johannesburg hospital. Authorities have not yet confirmed the victims’ nationalities. The third case, a 69-year-old British man, was also evacuated to Johannesburg, where he is being treated in intensive care.
Discussions are under way to determine whether two other sick passengers should be placed in isolation in a hospital in Cape Verde, after which the ship would continue to Spain’s Canary Islands. The MV Hondius is listed as a polar cruise ship on the websites of several travel agencies and is operated by the Dutch-based tour company Oceanwide Expeditions.
One of its cruises offers an itinerary departing from Ushuaia to Cape Verde, with stops in the islands of South Georgia and Saint Helena. The vessel can accommodate around 170 passengers and has approximately 70 crew members. Humans can contract hantaviruses through contact with infected rodents, their droppings, or via bites, as well as by inhaling contaminated dust.