Three people have died and four others have been sickened aboard a small Dutch expedition cruise ship in a suspected hantavirus outbreak, health officials say.<\/p>\n
The MV Hondius ship, carrying about 150 passengers, including 61 crew members and 17 Americans, is currently on lockdown off the coast of Cape Verde in the Atlantic Ocean, according to Oceanwide Expeditions, the vessel\u2019s operator.<\/p>\n
Hantavirus is typically passed from rodents to humans through feces, saliva or urine, and can cause severe respiratory illness. Human-to-human transmission is rare.<\/p>\n
Authorities are preparing to evacuate two crew members who are showing acute symptoms of the disease, the company said<\/a>. The disembarkation of the remaining passengers, including their medical evacuation and screening, requires permission from local health authorities and has not been finalized.<\/p>\n The confirmed hantavirus cases include a British passenger who is in intensive care in Johannesburg, South Africa, and a Dutch woman who died after disembarking with the body of her husband, who had shown symptoms before his death. The cause of his death and that of a German national have not yet been confirmed.<\/p>\n No other people with symptoms have been identified. Isolation measures, hygiene protocols and medical monitoring are in place on board as a precaution.<\/p>\n The World Health Organization said in a statement on Tuesday<\/a> that the suspected outbreak is not a public health threat and that the risk to the global population is \u201clow.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere is no need for panic or travel restrictions,\u201d Hans Kluge, the World Health Organization\u2019s regional director for Europe, said in a statement on Monday.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s what we know.<\/p>\n What is hantavirus and how do people get it?<\/p>\n The hantavirus gained attention in February 2025 when the late actor Gene Hackman\u2019s wife, Betsy Arakawa, died from a hantavirus infection in New Mexico<\/a>.<\/p>\n Hantaviruses are a \u201cfamily of viruses which can cause serious illnesses and death,\u201d according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<\/a>. People can get hantavirus by coming into contact with rodents, such as mice and rats, particularly when exposed to their urine, feces and saliva. Though rare, it\u2019s possible it can be transmitted through a bite or scratch from a rodent.<\/p>\n