South Africa confirms Andes hantavirus capable of human spread

South Africa’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases identified the Andes variant of hantavirus, a strain capable of rare human-to-human transmission, in the deadly outbreak aboard the Hondius cruise ship.

The strain — the only hantavirus known to spread between people — typically transmits through very close contact, underscoring concerns among health officials investigating the cluster of infections and deaths linked to the Dutch-flagged vessel.

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The ship will set course for the Canary Islands after three people are evacuated, its operator said. Two crew members who require urgent medical care are among those set to be flown out, along with another individual linked to a passenger who died earlier in the voyage, Oceanwide Expeditions BV said late Tuesday.

It will transfer the patients to the Netherlands using specialised aircraft, it said, without providing more details.

The World Health Organisation has identified seven medical cases linked to the cruise — five suspected and two laboratory-confirmed — including three deaths. One patient already evacuated is in intensive care in Johannesburg.

The agency is investigating whether limited human-to-human transmission may have occurred among close contacts.

The first patient, a Dutch man, and his wife traveled in South America before boarding the ship in Argentina on April 1. Both have since died.

The vessel carrying almost 150 passengers remains near Cape Verde off the coast of West Africa and will begin a three-day journey to either Gran Canaria or Tenerife in the Canary Islands once the evacuation is complete, Oceanwide Expeditions said. Discussions with relevant authorities are ongoing.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control is assessing the situation, with plans for passengers to be screened, treated and later repatriated under a joint protocol.

Passengers, crew and expedition staff from 23 different countries are isolating on the Hondius.

Severe cases can lead to hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, causing fluid buildup in the lungs. Early symptoms resemble flu but can worsen quickly. The overall public risk is considered low, as person-to-person transmission is unusual.

People can become infected with hantavirus by inhaling contaminated particles, often in enclosed spaces with rodent droppings. The ship departed southern Argentina in early April and visited remote islands in the South Atlantic before the outbreak emerged.

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