Suspected Outbreak Of Rare Hantavirus On Cruise Ship In Atlantic Ocean Kills 3 People
CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — A rare outbreak is suspected hantavirus infection Three people, including an elderly married couple, died and at least three people fell ill in an accident that occurred on a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean. World Health Organization And of south africa The Ministry of Health said on Sunday.
In a statement to The Associated Press, WHO said an investigation is ongoing but at least one case of hantavirus has been confirmed. The U.N. health agency said one of the patients was in intensive care at a hospital in South Africa and was working with authorities to evacuate two other people showing symptoms from the ship.
The Dutch company that operates the ship said that the ship is currently stopped off the coast. Cape VerdeIt is an island nation off the west coast of Africa and local authorities were helping but did not allow anyone to disembark. It was stated that the two sick people on the ship who needed urgent medical care were crew members.
Hantavirus infections are mostly spread by rodents
Hantaviruses are a family of viruses found throughout the world, spread primarily through contact with the urine or feces of infected rodents such as rats and mice. They attracted attention after the late actor Gene Hackman his wife, Betsy Arakawa, died from hantavirus infection in New Mexico last year.
Hackman died of heart disease at their home about a week later.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, hantaviruses cause two serious syndromes: hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a serious illness that affects the lungs, and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome, a serious illness affecting the kidneys.
The World Health Organization said that, although rare, hantavirus infections can spread between people. There is no specific treatment or cure, but early medical intervention can increase the chances of survival.
“WHO is aware of and supports a public health incident involving a cruise ship sailing in the Atlantic Ocean,” the organization said. “Detailed investigations, including further laboratory testing and epidemiological investigations, are ongoing. Medical care and support is being provided to passengers and crew. Sequencing of the virus is also ongoing.”
The week-long journey started in Argentina
The South African Ministry of Health said that the Dutch-flagged ship MV Hondius set sail. Argentina I arrived about three weeks ago for a cruise that included visits to Antarctica, the Falkland Islands and other stops. Eventually he had to go to Spain’s Canary Islands on the other side of the Atlantic.
In the statement made by the South African health department, it was stated that the first victim was a 70-year-old man who died on the ship and his body was removed to the British territory of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic. The man’s wife collapsed at an airport in South Africa while trying to fly to her native Netherlands, the ministry said. He died in a nearby hospital.
The ministry determined that the patient in intensive care at a hospital in Johannesburg was a British citizen. It was stated that after the ship left Saint Helena and was transferred from there to South Africa, the person fell ill near Ascension Island, another remote island in the Atlantic.
There were nearly 150 passengers on the plane
South Africa’s health department said there were about 150 tourists on the ship at the time of the outbreak. Several online tour operators said the Hondius, described as a specialist polar cruise ship, usually travels with a crew of around 70.
Oceanwide Expeditions, the company operating the cruise, said the body of the third victim was still on the ship in Cape Verde and its priority was to ensure the two crew members who were ill received medical care.
“Local health authorities visited the ship to assess the condition of two symptomatic individuals,” the company said. “They have not yet made a decision regarding the transfer of these individuals to medical care in Cape Verde.”
WHO said it was working with national authorities and ship operators to conduct a “full public health risk assessment” and provide support to those still on board.
Meanwhile, South Africa’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases was conducting contact tracing in the Johannesburg area to determine whether other people in South Africa had been exposed to infected travelers.
