Hantavirus cruise ship heads to Tenerife as authorities plan response and WHO assesses risk

Health agencies in several countries were getting ready to manage a cruise ship linked to hantavirus. The ship carried 140 passengers and crew members. It was due to arrive at Tenerife in the Canary Islands early Sunday morning. At least three passengers died, and others were infected. The World Health Organisation said the wider public risk was low.

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Hantavirus usually spread when people inhaled dust from infected rodent droppings. Signs of illness often appeared between one and eight weeks after exposure. The outbreak involved the Andes virus, which could rarely pass between people. Authorities and the cruise company issued updates. Some major facts remained unclear.

Hantavirus passengers and crew: evacuation plans on Tenerife

Spanish officials prepared to receive the remaining passengers and crew members on Tenerife. Authorities said passengers would be moved by small boats to buses. This would happen only when repatriation flights were ready. The United States agreed to send a plane to collect its citizens. The British government also planned a flight.

Other countries had not shared their plans in public. It was unclear how long people would wait on the ship. Virginia Barcones, Spain’s head of emergency services, said on Friday Spain requested medically equipped planes. These flights were meant for passengers with symptoms. It was not known if such aircraft would be available.

Hantavirus passengers and crew: possible outbreak source under review

Investigators in Argentina suspected a Dutch couple may have been infected first. The couple reportedly took a bird-watching trip before boarding in Argentina. The ship departure was on April 1. No organisation confirmed where or how the couple became ill. This left the starting point of the outbreak uncertain.

Argentina’s Health Ministry focused attention on Ushuaia, the country’s southernmost town. Officials planned to travel to Ushuaia in the coming days. This was stated in a written statement to The Associated Press. The statement gave no reason for the delay. The ministry did not confirm a link to a specific location.

Hantavirus passengers and crew: exposure numbers and route details

Oceanwide Expeditions said the MV Hondius left Ushuaia on April 1. The ship made two stops before the outbreak occurred. Six additional passengers boarded at Tristan da Cunha. The ship later stopped at St. Helena. There, 30 passengers left the ship. They included a Dutch woman and the body of her husband.

The nationalities of two of those 30 passengers were not known. Oceanwide Expeditions believed they were Chileans who boarded at Tristan da Cunha. Stephen Doughty, the UK minister of overseas territories, said on Friday a Tristan da Cunha resident was hospitalised with hantavirus symptoms. It was unclear if that person travelled on the ship.

Oceanwide Expeditions first said 114 passengers left Argentina. The crew total was not given then. Later, the company said there were 61 crew members from 12 countries. It was not known if crew membership changed during the voyage. The company later corrected figures for passengers leaving at St. Helena after noting a mismatch.

The revised count was lower than the Dutch Foreign Ministry’s estimate. The reason for the difference was not known. These reporting gaps made it hard to judge how many people faced possible exposure. They also complicated contact tracing by national authorities. Officials continued to compare lists from the ship and national records.

Hantavirus passengers and crew: tracking travellers after St. Helena

Several passengers who left at St. Helena travelled onward to other countries. The Dutch woman whose husband died on board flew to Johannesburg. The woman then briefly boarded a plane that was set to fly to Amsterdam. The woman was removed because the woman was too ill to travel. The woman later died.

South African and Dutch authorities tried to trace anyone who met the woman while travelling. A flight attendant who had contact reported symptoms. Tests later showed the flight attendant was negative for hantavirus. Some governments confirmed locations of their citizens. UK health officials said two were self-isolating, four stayed on St. Helena, and one was traced outside the UK.

UK officials did not know, or did not publish, how many other contacts those travellers had. Similar gaps appeared for passengers from other countries. With the ship nearing Tenerife, officials focused on safe evacuation and flight schedules. Investigators also continued to review where infection began and how far potential exposure reached.

With inputs from PTI