Health officials are investigating two new suspected hantavirus cases linked to the cruise ship outbreak aboard the Dutch vessel MV Hondius, raising concerns about wider international spread.
The new cases were reported in Spain and the remote island of Tristan da Cunha, separate from the eight infections already linked to the ship.
Three people have died, while six of the eight ship-related cases have been confirmed as Andes virus hantavirus . The only known hantavirus strain capable of limited human-to-human transmission through close contact. The World Health Organization (WHO), however, says the overall public risk remains low because the virus does not spread easily.
One suspected case involves a British passenger on Tristan da Cunha who had travelled aboard the cruise ship. Another involves a 32-year-old woman in Spain who reportedly sat near an infected passenger on a flight before developing mild respiratory symptoms.
The outbreak began aboard the MV Hondius, which carried 147 passengers and crew after departing Argentina in March and travelling through Antarctica and other destinations before heading toward the Canary Islands. Authorities said 34 passengers had already left the ship before the outbreak was identified.
The three deaths involved a Dutch couple and a German national. Four confirmed patients, two Britons, one Dutch national and one Swiss national, remain hospitalized in Europe and South Africa.
The cruise operator, Oceanwide Expeditions, said no symptomatic passengers remain onboard. The ship is expected to dock in Tenerife, where passengers and crew will undergo health screening before disembarkation.
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U.S. health authorities said American passengers aboard the ship will be flown to Omaha on a medical repatriation flight and quarantined at the University of Nebraska. The U.S. CDC has classified the outbreak as a Level 3 emergency response, its lowest activation level.
Health experts say the incident highlights how infectious diseases can spread rapidly through global travel, although authorities continue to stress that the chances of a large-scale outbreak remain low.
