As of May 7, 2026, the outbreak has been linked to three deaths, including two Dutch nationals and one German passenger. A British passenger remains in intensive care in Johannesburg, South Africa, while additional confirmed and suspected cases are being monitored in the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Singapore.
The Dutch-flagged ship departed Ushuaia, Argentina, on April 1 with 147 passengers and crew members from 23 countries. The vessel was later denied docking in Cabo Verde and is currently heading toward Tenerife in the Canary Islands as international health authorities continue investigations.
What makes Andes virus different?
Hantaviruses are typically spread through exposure to rodent urine, saliva, or droppings, often in poorly ventilated spaces where contaminated particles become airborne.
For decades, scientists believed human-to-human transmission was impossible. That changed with the discovery of the Andes virus in Argentina in 1995.
The Andes strain remains unique because it can spread between people through prolonged close contact, especially during the early stages of illness.
Health officials investigating the MV Hondius outbreak believe the virus likely spread among passengers after an initial infection occurred before or during the ship’s South American stops.
Despite concerns, experts stress that Andes virus does not spread easily like influenza or COVID-19. Transmission usually requires close and sustained exposure, and outbreaks historically remain limited in size.
Symptoms and severity
Hantavirus infection often begins with flu-like symptoms, including fever, fatigue, muscle aches, headache, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea.
In severe cases, the illness rapidly progresses into Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS), a life-threatening condition that causes fluid buildup in the lungs, breathing difficulties, shock, and organ failure.
The mortality rate for HPS in the Americas can reach 40 to 50 percent.
WHO says symptoms typically appear between two and four weeks after exposure, although onset can vary. Because patients can deteriorate rapidly, early hospitalization and intensive care are critical.
No vaccine or specific cure
There is currently no approved vaccine or antiviral cure for hantavirus pulmonary syndrome.
Treatment focuses on supportive care, including oxygen therapy, mechanical ventilation, careful fluid management, and intensive care monitoring. WHO advises that suspected cases be isolated quickly and transferred to hospitals capable of advanced respiratory treatment.
Although the antiviral drug ribavirin has shown some benefit against certain Asian hantavirus strains, it has not proven effective against the pulmonary form linked to Andes virus.
The long history of hantavirus
While the virus entered modern medicine relatively recently, historians believe hantavirus-related illnesses have existed for centuries.
Chinese medical records dating back to around 960 AD describe diseases involving fever and kidney failure consistent with hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome, a form of hantavirus infection common in Asia and Europe.
Modern scientific understanding began during the Korean War in the 1950s, when more than 3,000 United Nations soldiers developed a mysterious illness near the Hantan River. In 1978, South Korean scientist Ho Wang Lee successfully isolated the virus from field mice, leading to the naming of the Hantaan virus and the hantavirus family.
Hantavirus became widely known in 1993 during the “Four Corners” outbreak in the southwestern United States. A sudden cluster of fatal respiratory illnesses struck New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and Utah, shocking health officials after healthy young adults died within hours of hospitalisation.
Researchers identified a new strain carried by deer mice called Sin Nombre virus, which caused Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome. Unlike earlier hantaviruses that mainly attacked the kidneys, this strain targeted the lungs.
Two years later, scientists in Argentina identified the Andes virus, which later became the first hantavirus proven capable of human-to-human transmission.
That risk became undeniable during the 2018–2019 outbreak in Epuyén, Argentina, where 34 people were infected and 11 died. The outbreak required strict quarantine measures and extensive contact tracing, strategies now being repeated during the MV Hondius crisis.
Despite the seriousness of the outbreak, WHO and Africa CDC continue to assess the overall public risk as low.
The virus does not spread efficiently in casual settings, and outbreaks generally remain small and localised. Authorities have also rapidly implemented isolation measures and international contact tracing.
Health agencies are currently monitoring passengers who disembarked earlier in the voyage, healthcare workers involved in treatment, and travellers exposed during medical evacuation flights.
Preventing infection
Most hantavirus infections worldwide still originate from rodents rather than humans.
WHO advises people to avoid dry sweeping or vacuuming rodent-infested areas because these activities can aerosolise infectious particles. Instead, wet-cleaning methods and disinfectants should be used. Proper ventilation, safe food storage, and avoiding rodent nests also remain important preventive measures.
The MV Hondius outbreak serves as a reminder that even rare diseases can quickly become international concerns in an era of global travel. More than seventy years after hantavirus was first identified during the Korean War, the virus continues to challenge scientists, especially when it crosses the rare boundary from animals to humans.
