Just before the WHO's announcement on 3/5, the South African Ministry of Health reported that it was providing intensive care to a British national who tested positive for the virus in Johannesburg. Spokesperson Foster Mohale stated that South African authorities and the National Institute for Communicable Diseases are actively tracing contacts. Mohale advised the public to remain calm, as only two passengers from this voyage had entered South Africa.

Among the three fatalities, health officials identified a Dutch couple. The 70-year-old husband first developed symptoms of fever, headache, abdominal pain, and diarrhea, and died immediately upon the ship's arrival at St Helena island. Authorities are holding his body there, awaiting repatriation by his family. His 69-year-old wife passed away later at a hospital in Johannesburg.

For the British patient, symptoms began while the ship was traveling from St Helena island to Ascension island. Medical personnel transferred the patient to a private facility in Sandton, South Africa, where tests confirmed a positive result.

Among the 6 affected individuals, 3 have died and one is currently in intensive care in South Africa. Photo: *AFP*

The infection occurred during the MV Hondius voyage, which carried 170 passengers, 57 crew members, 13 guides, and a doctor, traveling from Ushuaia, Argentina, to Cape Verde. The 108-meter-long ship departed southern Argentina on 20/3 and was scheduled to conclude its journey on 4/5. During its transit, the MV Hondius traveled through Antarctica, the Falkland Islands, South Georgia, and various other islands in the Atlantic Ocean.

Dr. Emily Abdoler from the University of Michigan, US, described the incident of 6 people falling ill in an enclosed space like a cruise ship as extremely rare. The expert noted that Hantavirus is not a typical pathogen on cruise ships, unlike Norovirus or Corona. She hypothesized that the virus either pre-existed on the vessel or passengers were exposed to the source of infection at stopovers.

Hantavirus is a family of viruses primarily transmitted from rodents, especially rats, to humans. People typically contract the pathogen by inhaling air contaminated with dust mixed with the urine, feces, or saliva of infected rodents, or through direct contact.

Depending on the strain, this virus can cause severe respiratory distress syndrome or hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome. Initial signs often resemble common flu but can rapidly worsen and become life-threatening. As there is currently no vaccine or specific treatment, the most effective preventive measures are rodent control and maintaining a clean living environment.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported 890 Hantavirus cases from 1993 to 2023, including the high-profile death of Betsy Arakawa, wife of actor Gene Hackman, last year. To control the current situation, WHO is collaborating with relevant countries and island territories to implement an emergency response campaign to contain the pathogen.

Binh Minh (According to AFP, New York Times, BBC)