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The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) confirms two British nationals have contracted the hantavirus, with a suspected case involving a Briton on Tristan da Cunha. A Dutch woman who fell ill during her travels and later died, and three deaths linked to the outbreak, have been reported. Authorities are tracking passengers who left the ship at various ports.
Suspected cases of hantavirus have emerged in 13 countries across four continents following the departure of the MV Hondius from Argentina. The UK Health Security Agency has confirmed that two British nationals have contracted the virus, with a further suspected case involving a Briton currently on the remote island of Tristan da Cunha.
The individual on the South Atlantic island remains there, while the two confirmed British patients are being treated in hospitals in the Netherlands and South Africa. These developments follow an April 24 stop in St Helena, where 29 people—including seven Britons—disembarked. Among them was a Dutch woman who fell ill during her subsequent travels and later died. A total of three deaths have now been linked to the hantavirus outbreak on the vessel.
According to the World Health Organisation, it was not until May 2 that health officials first confirmed the presence of the virus in a passenger on board the ship, reports The Mirror. While the MV Hondius continues its journey towards Tenerife, the UKHSA reports that no British citizens currently on board have symptoms.
However, they remain under close observation. The global reach of the infection continues to be monitored as authorities track passengers who left the ship at various ports, reports The Mirror. Authorities in nations including South Africa, Singapore and the Netherlands are now tracking down passengers who were on board the vessel. The Dutch couple who represented the first two cases had travelled through Argentina, Chile and Uruguay before boarding the ship, according to the WHO.
A statement from the UKHSA said the ship is expected to dock in Tenerife on Sunday, according to the latest updates from the Spanish health ministry. It added: “UK Government staff will be on the ground ready to support the British nationals disembarking.
“British passengers and ship crew not displaying any symptoms of hantavirus will be escorted by UK Government staff to an airport and given free passage back to the UK. ” It said Foreign Office officials and UKHSA teams will continue to support passengers, with a dedicated repatriation flight is being organised for passengers and crew. The WHO also said that the risk to the general public remains low.
Hantavirus is typically contracted through breathing in contaminated rodent droppings and does not spread easily between humans.
'We believe this will be a limited outbreak if the public health measures are implemented and solidarity is shown across all countries,' said Dr. Abdirahman Mahamud, the WHO's alert and response director, on Thursday. Argentina South Africa Cape Verde Singapore Philippines US Spain UK France Netherlands Denmark Germany Switzerland All British passengers and crew from the ship are being asked to isolate for 45 days upon returning to the UK, with close monitoring by UKHSA officials.
“Follow-up is already under way for individuals who may have been in contact with cases and have since returned to the UK or are in in UK Overseas Territories,” the statement added. It has already emerged that two Britons are currently self-isolating at home in the UK after they left the ship. The two flew back to the UK via Johannesburg after disembarking in St Helena. Four Britons in total remain on the South Atlantic remote islands.
A seventh individual has been traced outside the UK, according to the UKHSA. Some 19 British nationals in total were listed as passengers on the MV Hondius, which was sailing from Argentina to Cape Verde, with four British crew members.
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