French Woman Evacuated from Cruise Ship Tests Positive for Hantavirus
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — A woman from France who was evacuated from a cruise ship has tested positive for hantavirus, and her condition has deteriorated while in the hospital, as reported by French Health Minister Stephanie Rist on Monday.
This woman was among five French passengers brought back to Paris from the MV Hondius. She started showing symptoms during the flight, according to Rist in an interview with France-Inter.
Similarly, one of the 17 American passengers evacuated to Nebraska also tested positive for hantavirus. Interestingly, this individual isn’t exhibiting any symptoms, while another American did show mild symptoms, U.S. health officials disclosed late Sunday. The flight carrying these passengers landed in the early hours of Monday.
The Americans were initially directed to the University of Nebraska Medical Center to undergo evaluations. This facility includes a federally funded quarantine area aimed at determining their risk based on possible contact with symptomatic individuals.
Notably, this medical school features a specialized unit for treating highly contagious diseases, previously utilized for COVID-19 and Ebola cases.
After the MV Hondius anchored in the Canary Islands, passengers began returning home aboard military and government flights on Sunday. Personnel in comprehensive protective gear helped escort travelers from the ship to shore in Tenerife, a process that continued into Monday.
The World Health Organization advised close monitoring of these former passengers, leading many nations to impose quarantines. Earlier, officials, including those from the Spanish Health Ministry and Oceanwide Expeditions, reported that none of the more than 140 individuals aboard the Hondius had shown any virus symptoms.
On Sunday, passengers were transferred from the ship to shore under the watchful eye of protective personnel, with evacuation flights set to continue for individuals from over 20 countries well into Monday.
Since the outbreak began, three individuals have died, and five who left the vessel earlier were confirmed as infected.
Public Health Risk Considered Low
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasized that the general population need not be alarmed by the outbreak. He asserted, “This is not another COVID. The risk to the public is low, so they shouldn’t be scared, and they shouldn’t panic,” he stated on Sunday.
While hantavirus typically spreads through rodent waste and isn’t easily transmitted between people, there are concerns that the Andes virus involved in this case might be capable of limited human-to-human transmission. Symptoms may appear anywhere from one to eight weeks post-exposure.
The WHO recommends that the home countries of these passengers engage in active monitoring and follow-up, ensuring daily health checks at home or in designated facilities, according to Maria van Kerkhove, the agency’s lead epidemiologist.
Many nations have announced plans for quarantining or hospitalizing their citizens for observation.
