A passenger under hantavirus quarantine for up to 42 days said the sealed-off Nebraska hospital where most of the returning Americans are isolated is 'so nice.'
The group of cruise ship passengers were taken to the National Quarantine Unit, the only federal center for such purposes in the country, after landing at Omaha airport about 2.30am on Monday.
The 17 US citizens and one British dual national from the MV Hondius were kitted out in masks and holding only a few of their belongings in plastic bags, the New York Times reported.
The virus that gripped the cruise ship weeks ago was fatal for three of some 150 passengers on board after departing Argentina in April, bound for the Canary Islands.
Across the world, suspected new cases continued to crop up and several others tested positive or fell ill after departing the infected cruise ship. At least six other cases were detected globally.
Dr Michael Wadman, the director of the National Quarantine Unit, told the Times: '[The passengers] were really pleasant, in good spirits and grateful to be home...They were very tired.'
Of the 18 cruise passengers who returned to the US, 15 will be held in the quarantine housing center, while one who tested positive will be held in a nearby biocontainment unit. Another two, one with mild symptoms and their partner, were taken to a hospital in Atlanta.
All patients, ranging in age from around 20 to 80 years old, were reported to be doing well, their doctors said.
A passenger quarantining for up to 42 days in the National Quarantine Unit in Nebraska after returning off the hantavirus infested cruise ship said the sealed-off facility is 'so nice'
For the next roughly 42 days, fifteen of the eighteen who returned to US soil would call the quarantine facility- the only federal center for such purposes in the country - home as they are monitored for hantavirus
Travel blogger Jake Rosmarin, the only identified passenger on the repatriation flight to Omaha on Monday, shared this smiling selfie this morning, telling his Instagram followers that he is 'okay and feeling well'
A chartered aircraft carrying passengers evacuated from the cruise ship MV Hondius, which was affected by a hantavirus outbreak, arriving at Eppley Airfield in Omaha, Nebraska
Wadman said the passengers were all seeking out ways to get moving again, which the unit offers with rooms that feature exercise equipment, a full bed, video technology, Wi-Fi and a window.
'They're an active group,' he told the outlet.
Angie Vasa, the director of isolation and quarantine for special pathogens at Nebraska Medicine, said one male passenger even commented on the quality of their rooms.
'I'm so glad that these rooms are so nice,' she recalled the unidentified passenger saying.
The facility was opened in 2020 and previously housed a dozen Americans who were exposed to coronavirus on the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan, the Times reported.
Dr Angela Hewitt told the Times that those being quarantined won't be required to wear masks, but their doctors would remain covered head to toe in protective gear, including air-purifying respirators, coveralls, and shoe covers.
A motorcade carrying passengers evacuated from the cruise ship MV Hondius, which was affected by a hantavirus outbreak, leaves Eppley Airfield in Omaha, Nebraska
Passengers are sprayed with disinfectant by Spanish government officials before boarding a plane after disembarking from the hantavirus-stricken cruise ship MV Hondius at Tenerife airport on Sunday
Currently, none have been reported to be showing symptoms, which include nausea, headache, coughing, and congestion, according to the Times.
On Monday at a news conference, health officials said that the passengers, once fully assessed, would likely be able to leave quarantine early and isolate at home should they wish to.
In an update on Friday, WHO confirmed that eight passengers no longer on the ship had fallen ill, with six of them confirmed to have contracted the hantavirus. Four remain hospitalized in South Africa, the Netherlands and Switzerland.
A suspected case in Germany tested negative, while a Spanish woman, who had flown on the same flight as a patient who later died from the virus, tested negative on Saturday.
Before the boat evacuated, medical officials ran tests on those on board the ship, Spain's Health Minister Monica García said, CNN reported.
Three people - a Dutch couple and a German national - were reported to have died from the virus, a rare disease typically caused by exposure to infected rat waste, after the cruise ship left Argentina last month.
The UK Health Security Agency confirmed on Friday that a British national disembarked from the cruise ship MV Hondius on to the island, where they live, with a suspected case of hantavirus.
Public health officials, while noting that the risk to the public remains low, said that all passengers who were on board the cruise are considered high-risk contacts.
The outbreak has been connected to a birdwatching expedition in Argentina that two of the passengers went on before boarding the ship.