The MV Hondius set sail from Ushuaia, Argentina, on Wednesday 1 April with 150 passengers from 23 different countries. What started as a voyage that promised passengers the trip of a lifetime across the Atlantic, has become a traveller’s worst nightmare - with the death of three passengers.
On Saturday 11 April, a Dutch man died on board, his cause of death unknown. Almost two weeks later his body was taken off the boat in St Helena, accompanied by his wife. She was evacuated to South Africa, where authorities said she died in a Johannesburg hospital, with the World Health Organisation (WHO) since confirming the cause of death as the hantavirus.
On Monday 27 April, a British passenger became unwell with the virus and was evacuated to South Africa, where they are in a critical but stable condition. Then, on Saturday 2 May, a German national also died, bringing the total number of fatalities to three. It currently remains unclear if they were infected.
Hantavirus is a rare but severe disease typically spread by rodents, with only one type, the Andes virus, known to be able to transmit from human-to-human. The strain is prominent in Latin America, primarily found in Chile and Argentina where the ship originated, and the WHO suspect this strain infected passengers before they embarked on the cruise and spread it to other passengers.
Hantavirus symptoms begin similarly to the flu, with patients experiencing fatigue, fevers, chills and aches. Over time, the virus can damage the heart, lungs or kidneys, causing patients to suffer severe shortness of breath, organ failure and sometimes death. While hantavirus is rare, it is highly deadly, with a mortality rate of around 38%, according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and there’s no specific treatment beyond managing symptoms. However, the WHO has consistently emphasised that risk of transmission to the wider public is low.
The Spanish government has announced that MV Hondius can sail to the Canary Islands, where those on board will be treated and repatriated, following Cape Verdean officials decline to grant clearance earlier this week, leaving the vessel anchored nearby.