At least six Americans from the hantavirus-infected MV Hondius cruise ship have returned home to four states — raising fears that the growing outbreak of the deadly virus could spread to the US.
Two Georgia residents, one in Arizona, two in Texas, one in Virginia and one California resident were on board the Dutch cruise liner and left during the virus outbreak — which has killed three people and sickened at least seven others so far.
Follow the latest updates on the hantavirus outbreak stemming from the MV Hondius cruise ship
The passengers did not know that they had been exposed to the virus — which is usually only spread by infected mouse or rat droppings, but is believed to demonstrate human-to-human transmission — when they left the boat at Saint Helena when it docked at the remote South Atlantic island.
Texas said the two residents have agreed to monitor their temperature daily for possible infection — but they are not currently showing infection.
Georgia residents were both currently in good health, showing no signs of infection and following recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Georgia Department of Public Health said.
The Arizona passenger was not experiencing symptoms either, according to the state’s health services department.
The Virginia resident was “currently in good health” and being monitored, the Virginia Department of Health said.
California’s health department said the risk to the public was low.
The virus can incubate for up to eight weeks before patients begin showing symptoms.
The Dutch vessel’s operating company, Oceanwide Expeditions, revealed Thursday that six Americans were among the 30 passengers who disembarked during the ship’s stop at Saint Helena on April 24 – and potentially brought the virus home with them.
The other guests who departed at that point included seven British residents, two Canadians, two Swiss nationals, two Turkish nationals and three from the Netherlands — including the body of a 70-year-old Dutchman, who was killed on board by the virus on April 11, and his wife, who later died, the company said.
Along with two passengers whose nationalities are unknown, one national from each of the following countries were among those who also disembarked: Germany, Denmark, Saint Kitts and Nevis, New Zealand, Singapore and Sweden.
It wasn’t immediately clear if other Americans had disembarked the Hondius at any other point in the voyage. The Dutch Foreign Ministry previously said the number of passengers who left from Saint Helena was closer to 40, according to reports.
“These disembarked guests have all been contacted by Oceanwide Expeditions. We are working to establish details of all passengers and crew who embarked and disembarked on various stops of M/V Hondius since March 20,” the company wrote in the Thursday update.
The boat is currently on its way to the Canary Islands, where officials expect the roughly 90 remaining passengers will be permitted to disembark. The 353-foot vessel has been left stranded off the coast of Cape Verde for several days this week.
A 56-year-old former British cop, a 41-year-old Dutch national and a 65-year-old German national were evacuated from the ship and flown to the Netherlands for medical attention Wednesday.
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A flight attendant has been hospitalized with a suspected infection after she came in contact with the Dutchwoman before she died on April 26.
A Swiss man who had also returned home earlier in the expedition ship’s 35-day-long voyage — during its two-day stop at Saint Helena, along with at least 22 other passengers — tested positive for the virus Wednesday.
Though hantavirus is typically spread through rodent droppings, a rare strain that can be transmitted person-to-person and carries a 40% mortality rate — the Andes virus — is the culprit behind the Hondius outbreak, the WHO announced this week.
Experts have stressed that human-to-human contagion is very rare and requires very close contact, but the outbreak has put health authorities on high alert.
Countries worldwide, including the US, are still scrambling to trace people who had already left the cruise ship before the outbreak became known.
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