Hantavirus cruise ship latest: Two self-isolating in UK after possible exposure on board, health officials say

The UK government is preparing to bring British passengers on board the cruise ship MV Hondius home, as long as they stay symptom-free.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said that none of UK citizens onboard the cruise ship currently have symptoms, but that they’ll be monitored, tested, and asked to isolate after returning to the country.

Two people who already returned to the UK from the ship independently are also symptom-free and self-isolating, along with a small number of close contacts.

UK health officials say the risk to the general public is very low.

One British passenger and two others with suspected infections were evacuated to the Netherlands for treatment on Wednesday.

The ship is on its way to the Canary Islands now with almost 150 people onboard.

Everyone on board the cruise ship heading to the Canary Islands should be considered a “close contact”, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has said.

A threat assessment brief from the European health agency states: “We consider everyone on the ship to be close contacts, due to the closed setting and shared social areas and activities, aligned with the precautionary principle.”

But it said that the strain of the virus “does not transmit easily so it is unlikely that it would cause many cases or a widespread outbreak in the community, if infection prevention and control measures are applied”.

People with symptoms should be medically evacuated while passengers without symptoms should receive a test when they disembark, the brief added.

It also said a negative test “may not exclude infection”.

“Disembarking passengers should be provided with clear instructions and recommendations until their diagnosis is confirmed or ruled out.”

The cruise ship MV Hondius is now heading to the Canary Islands from Cape Verde after three people suspected of having hantavirus infections were evacuated from the ship on Wednesday.

The three passengers are from Britain, the Netherlands and Germany. Earlier reports said the British person was a doctor, but that now appears to be incorrect.

Two other British passengers had already left the ship earlier and are currently self-isolating at home after possible exposure.

The ship is still heading to the Canary Islands with 145 people on board, all reportedly symptom-free according to the operator, Oceanwide Expeditions.

Spanish authorities say there is “no risk” to local residents, but the Canary Islands’ president says he is concerned and was not properly consulted.

Hantaviruses, which have been present for centuries, have a documented history of outbreaks across Asia and Europe.

In the Eastern Hemisphere, these viruses have been associated with severe conditions such as haemorrhagic fever and kidney failure.

A distinct group of hantaviruses emerged in the early 1990s in the southwestern United States, leading to the acute respiratory disease now known as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome.

Hantavirus is mainly spread by contact with rodents or their urine, saliva or droppings, particularly when the material is disturbed and becomes airborne, posing a risk of inhalation.

People are typically exposed to hantavirus around their homes, cabins or sheds, especially when cleaning out enclosed spaces with little ventilation or going into areas where there are mouse droppings.

The WHO says that while rare, hantaviruses may spread between people.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began tracking the virus after a 1993 outbreak in the Four Corners region – the area where Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah meet.

It was a doctor with the Indian Health Service who first noticed a pattern of deaths among young patients, said Michelle Harkins, a pulmonologist with the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center who for years has been studying the disease and helping patients.

Most US cases are in Western states. New Mexico and Arizona are hotspots, Dr Harkins said, likely because the odds are greater for mouse-human encounters in rural areas.

Dutch airline KLM has confirmed that a Dutch passenger who died from hantavirus was briefly on board one of its aircraft in Johannesburg.

The airline’s crew decided to not allow the passenger to travel on the flight due to their medical condition.

The flight concerned was KL592, which departed Johannesburg for Amsterdam on 25 April.

In a statement, the airline said: “Yesterday evening, the Dutch public health authority RIVM informed KLM that one of the Dutch nationals who died from hantavirus had briefly been on board a KLM aircraft in Johannesburg on April 25, 2026.

“Due to the passenger’s medical condition at the time, the crew decided not to allow the passenger to travel on the flight. The passenger sadly later passed away in Johannesburg. KLM extends its condolences to the next of kin and wishes them much strength during this difficult time.”

Travel blogger Jake Rosmarin has been documenting his time aboard the illness-stricken ship, telling The Independent in a statement that aside from the two confirmed cases, the other passengers on board are “doing well” and remain “in good spirits”.

Mr Rosmarin noted that the MV Hondius is an expedition vessel, not an average cruise ship, and is held to a higher standard of cleanliness due to the types of trips it takes

“These ships operate with strict protocols and a strong emphasis on cleanliness, especially given the remote and environmentally sensitive regions they visit, which require high levels of biosecurity,” he said.

“The vessel is maintained to a very high standard, and suggestions that it is unclear are not accurate,” he added.

The word hantavirus refers to a broad family of viruses, with different versions in different countries.

Almost none of them have been found to spread from person to person — with the possible exception of the Andes virus, which has been confirmed in the current outbreak.

Still, transmission between people does not happen easily, and would require “close and prolonged” contact, according to the World Health Organisation.

“We haven’t had huge person-to-person spreads of hantavirus infection ever before, and there’s no reason to suspect a huge outbreak from this case at this point,” said Steven Bradfute, an associate professor and associate director of the Center for Global Health at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, which specialises in hantavirus research.

South African tests first confirmed the Andes virus when health authorities said they identified the strain of hantavirus in two passengers who were on the ship.

WHO said the Andes virus is found in South America, primarily in Argentina and Chile.

The UKHSA has said up to eight weeks of isolation could be needed after exposure to the hantavirus.

A spokesperson said this was the “most cautious scenario” and the public health body would be monitoring exposed passengers “very closely” over the coming days and weeks.

“Most cases of hantavirus, we think, are transmitted within the first few weeks, but up to eight is the figure we are working with,” the spokesperson said in a video shared by Sky News.

“We are working on the most cautious scenario, which is the potential eight week isolation. Over the coming days and weeks, we will be monitoring these people very closely and we may be able to adjust that as time goes on.

“We are going to see how the data derives in the coming days. As you would expect, we are going to treat everything with the utmost caution.”