Global health officials are monitoring a growing hantavirus outbreak linked to passengers aboard the MV Hondius, with confirmed and suspected cases rising to 11 as quarantines continue across multiple countries.
According to reports, at least three people have died, including a Dutch couple and a German passenger. U.S. officials said American travelers from the ship are being monitored at medical facilities in Nebraska and Atlanta, with some patients placed in specialized biocontainment units as a precaution.
A final group of passengers disembarked the hantavirus-hit MV Hondius in Tenerife, Spain, on Monday night, as health authorities confirmed three new positive cases linked to the outbreak. The ship left for the Netherlands after its last six passengers and some crew members got… pic.twitter.com/7l8YA5NiBz
— CBS News (@CBSNews) May 12, 2026
The outbreak began after the cruise departed Argentina in April with nearly 150 passengers aboard. Health authorities are investigating whether exposure may have occurred during a bird-watching excursion in southern Argentina before the voyage.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that additional cases could emerge because hantavirus can incubate for up to 42 days.
Officials from the World Health Organization and U.S. health agencies stressed that the overall risk to the public remains low.
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