Cruise Ship Outbreak Points to Virus Transmission Among Humans

(Bloomberg) — The cruise ship where a handful of passengers contracted a rare respiratory virus, stranding hundreds aboard, will travel to the Canary Islands once two ill crew members are medically evacuated, the World Health Organization said, adding it suspects limited transmission between passengers.

Two passengers have so far been confirmed to have a variant of hantavirus, a rare infection that typically spreads to humans through contact with infected rodents and their droppings. One was among three people who have died in the outbreak and the other is in intensive care in South Africa, the WHO said.

Others who are ill — and their contacts — are being traced and tested to understand where the contagion began and how it progressed.

“We don’t have a full picture yet but we have some working assumptions,” Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s director for epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention, said at a briefing. The first patient, a Dutch man, was likely infected off the ship and transmitted the virus to close contacts, including his wife, who also died. “We do believe there may be some human-to-human transmission among very close contacts,” she said.

Passengers and staff from 23 different countries are isolating on the ship, the MV Hondius, according to its Dutch operator, Oceanwide Expeditions BV. A total of seven people out of almost 150 have become ill, the WHO said. Severe cases can lead to hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, causing fluid buildup in the lungs. Early symptoms resemble flu but can worsen quickly. The overall public risk is considered low, as person-to-person transmission is unusual.

“There’s no evidence of spread beyond the ship,” said Benjamin Brennan of the University of Glasgow. “The real concern is whether additional cases emerge among passengers and crew during this critical window.”

People can become infected with hantavirus by inhaling contaminated particles, often in enclosed spaces with rodent droppings. The ship, which left southern Argentina about three weeks ago for the Canary Islands via Cape Verde, also passed several islands en route. The Andes variant, which can spread between humans, is the suspected strain pending test results.

The WHO is working with Spanish authorities ahead of the ship’s arrival in the Canary Islands, where it will be disinfected and undergo a full epidemiological investigation. The risk to remaining passengers will also be assessed.

Local health officials have visited the vessel but have not allowed sick passengers to disembark, Oceanwide said. Because the ship sails under a Dutch flag, the Netherlands is coordinating the response.

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