- Two cases of hantavirus have been confirmed among cruise ship passengers near Cape Verde.
- In total, they identified seven cases of hantavirus infection, three people died.
- Hantaviruses are mainly transmitted by rodents through their urine, droppings, saliva or bites.
Two cases of hantavirus infection among passengers of a cruise ship off the coast of Cape Verde have been laboratory confirmed. the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday. According to her, the infection is suspected in five other cases, including three people who have died in the meantime, TASR informs, according to a report by the AFP agency.
“As of May 4, 2026, seven cases have been identified (two laboratory-confirmed hantavirus cases and five suspected cases) including three deaths, one critically ill patient and three people reporting mild symptoms,” the WHO said in a statement that three of the affected people are no longer on the ship and four remain on board.
Firma Oceanwide Expeditions ako the operator of the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius confirmed the death of three passengers on Monday. The vessel was heading from the Argentinian city of Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego to the Cape Verde archipelago off the West African coast. Two people died on board and one after leaving it.
According to the operator, strict preventive measures are in place on the ship and people with symptoms are isolated. The WHO added on Tuesday that it was trying to trace people from the flight between the island of Saint Helena and Johannesburg, South Africa, which was also used by a cruise ship passenger who later died of hantavirus.
This one A Dutch woman, whose husband died of the virus while on a ship stranded off Cape Verde, disembarked on the island of St. Helena on April 24 with “gastrointestinal symptoms.” Her condition “deteriorated during the flight to Johannesburg” and she died on 26 Aprilthe WHO said. “Checking the contacts of the passengers on board the aircraft has been started,” the organization said.
“Based on current information, WHO assesses the risk to the world population as low and will continue to monitor and update the situation. WHO is working with participating countries and the ship’s operator to support passengers and crew. The coordinated international response includes in-depth investigation, isolation and care of cases, medical evacuation and laboratory tests,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the head of the organization, wrote on the X platform.
Humans can become infected with hantavirus through contact with rodents such as rats and mice, especially their urine, droppings and saliva. It can also be spread by their bites or scratches, but this is rare. Hantaviruses cause serious infectious diseases such as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) and hemorrhagic fever with renal (kidney) syndrome (HFRS).
