American Cruise Passenger Tests Positive for Hantavirus as 17 Americans Are Quarantined

An American passenger returning to the United States from a hantavirus-stricken cruise ship has tested positive for the deadly virus, while a second American is showing mild symptoms. Both individuals were aboard the MV Hondius, a luxury vessel that was recently anchored off Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands, which has become the center of a large-scale international medical evacuation.A French woman also tested positive for the virus after developing symptoms during her repatriation flight to Paris on Sunday. Her condition deteriorated overnight after she was admitted to a specialized hospital unit, according to France’s health minister. She was among five French nationals evacuated from the ship over the weekend as international authorities scrambled to contain the situation.In response to the growing outbreak, 17 American passengers were flown from the Canary Islands to Nebraska for evaluation and isolation. The flight touched down early Monday morning. During the journey, two affected individuals were transported in specialized biocontainment units to limit any potential spread of the pathogen.The repatriated American passengers are being evaluated at the National Quarantine Unit at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. As the only federally funded resource of its kind, the facility is specifically designed to provide first-class quarantine and isolation care to individuals exposed to highly hazardous communicable diseases. Its 20 rooms employ individual negative air pressure systems, are single occupancy with en-suite bathrooms, and contain exercise equipment and Wi-Fi connectivity for patients requiring longer stays.A spokesman for the Nebraska Medicine network, Kayla Thomas, outlined the immediate protocol for the arriving citizens. “One passenger will be transported to the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit upon arrival while other passengers will go to the National Quarantine Unit for assessment and monitoring. The passenger who is going to the Biocontainment Unit tested positive for the virus but does not have symptoms,” she said.The unprecedented medical emergency marks the first time a contagious hantavirus has caused an outbreak on a cruise ship. Health officials have identified the specific strain as the Andes virus, which, unlike most hantaviruses that spread strictly through rodent droppings, can transmit between humans in rare instances. Since the ship departed from Argentina in early April, the virus has claimed three lives and infected at least six people.Argentine officials speculate that the virus was contracted when a Dutch couple aboard the ship visited a landfill site in Ushuaia, Argentina, for a birdwatching tour. The couple, who had authored books on rare birds, was reportedly in search of the white-throated caracara. According to the officials, who spoke to the Associated Press, the working theory is that while at the landfill the couple inhaled particles from the feces of long-tailed pygmy rice rats, known to carry the Andes strain of the hantavirus. But authorities say Ushuaia and the surrounding Tierra del Fuego province have never recorded a hantavirus case. Because the virus’s incubation period can last up to eight weeks, state and local health departments in Georgia, Texas, Arizona, Virginia, California, and New Jersey are closely monitoring passengers who disembarked earlier in the voyage on April 24.Hantavirus causes fever, fatigue, nausea, and trouble breathing, carrying a fatality rate of up to 50 percent in the Americas. The specific strain on the ship, the Andes strain, is uniquely capable of human-to-human transmission through close contact, though it is primarily carried by the South American pygmy rice rat.The broader evacuation effort has involved coordinating complex logistics for passengers from more than 20 countries. Emergency crews clad in full-body protective suits and breathing masks escorted travelers directly from the ship to waiting transport. The World Health Organization recommends a strict monitoring and isolation period for all former passengers. Despite the severe nature of the disease, health experts emphasize the threat to the general population remains minimal. The director general of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, attempted to ease concerns about the global impact. “This is not another COVID. And the risk to the public is low. So they shouldn’t be scared, and they shouldn’t panic,” he said.The ship’s captain, Jan Dobrogowski, released a video praising the resilience of everyone involved in the crisis. “I’ve witnessed your caring, your unity, and quiet strength amongst everybody on board — guests and crew alike — and I must commend my crew for the courage and the selfless resolve that they showed time and again in the most difficult moments,” he said. “I could not imagine sailing through these circumstances with a better group of people, guests and crew alike.”Mr. Dobrogowski also offered his condolences regarding the tragic fatalities. His thoughts, he said, “are with the ones that are no longer with us, and whatever I say will not ease this loss, but I’d like you to know that they are with us every day in our hearts and our thoughts.”

American Cruise Passenger Tests Positive for Hantavirus as 17 Americans Are Quarantined

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