Hantavirus Outbreak on Cruise Ship Kills Three, Sickens Others in Atlantic

CAPE TOWN, South Africa — A suspected outbreak of the rare hantavirus infection on a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean killed three people, including an elderly married couple, and sickened at least three others, the World Health Organization and South Africa's Department of Health said Sunday.

The World Health Organization told The Associated Press that an investigation was underway and at least one case of hantavirus had been confirmed. One patient was in intensive care in a South African hospital, the U.N. agency said. It was working with authorities to evacuate two others showing symptoms from the ship.

The Dutch foreign ministry told AFP it was examining options to medically evacuate a few people from the ship. "If this can take place, the ministry of foreign affairs will coordinate it," a spokesperson said.

The Dutch company operating the ship said it was positioned off the coast of Cape Verde, an island nation off Africa's west coast. Local authorities were assisting but had not permitted anyone to disembark. The two sick people onboard needing urgent care were crew members.

WHO's regional director for Europe, Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge, said Monday, "The risk to the wider public remains low. There is no need for panic or travel restrictions," according to Reuters.

Hantaviruses, found worldwide, spread mainly through contact with urine or feces of infected rodents such as rats and mice. They drew notice after actor Gene Hackman's wife, Betsy Arakawa, died from hantavirus in New Mexico last year. Hackman died about a week later at their home from heart disease.

The viruses cause hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, which affects the lungs, and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome, which affects the kidneys, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Though rare, WHO said infections can spread between people. No specific treatment exists, but early medical care improves survival odds.

"WHO is aware of and supporting a public health event involving a cruise vessel sailing in the Atlantic Ocean," the organization said. "Detailed investigations are ongoing, including further laboratory testing, and epidemiological investigations. Medical care and support are being provided to passengers and crew. Sequencing of the virus is also ongoing."

South Africa's Department of Health said the Dutch-flagged MV Hondius left Argentina about three weeks ago for a cruise visiting Antarctica, the Falkland Islands and other stops. It was scheduled to end at Spain's Canary Islands.

The first victim, a 70-year-old man, died on the ship. His body was removed in the British territory of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic, the department said. His wife collapsed at a South African airport while trying to fly home to the Netherlands and died at a nearby hospital.

A Dutch Foreign Ministry spokesperson confirmed to Reuters that two Dutch passengers had died but gave no details.

The department identified the patient in intensive care at a Johannesburg hospital as a British national. That person fell ill near Ascension Island, another remote Atlantic island, after the ship left Saint Helena, and was transferred to South Africa.

About 150 tourists were onboard during the outbreak, South Africa's health department said. Several online tour operators noted the Hondius, a specialist polar cruise ship, typically carries around 70 crew members.

Oceanwide Expeditions, which runs the cruise, said the third victim's body remained onboard in Cape Verde. Its priority was medical care for the two ill crew members. "Local health authorities have visited the vessel to assess the condition of the two symptomatic individuals," the company said. "They are yet to make a decision regarding the transfer of these individuals into medical care in Cape Verde."

WHO was working with national authorities and ship operators on a full public health risk assessment and support for those onboard.

South Africa's National Institute for Communicable Diseases was conducting contact tracing in the Johannesburg area to check for exposure among others who encountered the infected passengers in South Africa.