Britons sent to Wuhan facility as Hantavirus ‘jumps beyond cruiseship’ | UK | News
Britain prepares to repatriate citizens linked to hantavirus-hit MV Hondius; The WHO chief warned that the long incubation period of the virus makes further cases inevitable.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the pathogen’s extended latency made further infections likely and held back from declaring the situation a broader public health emergency. Stating that there was “a lot of interaction” between passengers in the early stages of the journey, he said: “The incubation period is six to eight weeks. We expect more cases.”
Suspicious cases that emerged independently in Italy and France raised the possibility that the virus may have traveled outside the ship. A total of 11 cases (9 confirmed, 2 probable) among those sailing aboard the MV Hondius, with 3 resulting in death.
What happened to patient zero and the other patients who died?
The chain of infection is believed to have started with Leo Schilperoord, a 70-year-old Dutch citizen who died on April 6, weeks before the virus was identified.
His wife, Mirjam, 69, fell seriously ill on a KLM flight from South Africa and was removed from the plane, where she died two weeks later in a Johannesburg hospital. Samples of the Italian passenger who shared his flight were sent for testing. A third passenger from Germany also died.
A separate suspected case unrelated to the MV Hondius was hospitalized in Brittany this morning. Local mayor Quentin Le Gaillard tried to reassure residents: “There is no need to panic. We are only talking about a single case.”
What happens to British citizens linked to the outbreak?
Health authorities are preparing to fly ten British citizens who disembarked in St Helena back to the UK for the remainder of their isolation, along with local healthcare workers treating them, the Daily Mail reported.
The UKHSA said the group had been moved to “locations where they can self-isolate safely with access to appropriate specialist medical services”, adding: “This is because England’s NHS high-consequences infectious disease network is well equipped to intervene if they feel unwell. None of these contacts are currently symptomatic and this is a measure to support communities in overseas parts of the UK.”
22 of the returning passengers were taken to Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral after landing in Manchester; it is a place that carries its own echo and was home to the first Britons repatriated from Wuhan at the beginning of Covid.
They underwent a three-day assessment and will now be isolated for a further 42 days. It is understood that two Britons who returned from the ship early and are in quarantine at home will also be moved to Arrowe Park.
Authorities do not have the authority to mandate compliance with isolation unless individuals refuse and pose a direct public health risk. Concerned locals on the Wirral questioned why those on board were not isolated at sea.
What is the current situation for British hantavirus patients?
It is known that three British citizens have caught the virus. One is recovering in Johannesburg, the second is under care in the Netherlands and the third remains at Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic.
