Washington, May 11: An American traveler aboard the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius has tested positive for Hantavirus, while another passenger is exhibiting mild symptoms. This information was provided by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The department announced the news on the social media platform X, stating that all 17 American citizens on board the MV Hondius are being airlifted back to the United States. As a precaution, the infected and symptomatic traveler will be placed in a bio-containment unit during the flight.
According to established protocols, the passengers will first be taken to the Regional Emerging Special Pathogen Treatment Center (RESPTC) at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. The passenger with mild symptoms will then be transferred to another RESPTC at their final destination.
The department noted that each traveler will undergo a medical examination upon arrival, and appropriate treatment and support will be provided based on their condition.
As of Saturday, there have been eight suspected cases and three deaths linked to this outbreak.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that the incubation period for Hantavirus can range from one to eight weeks, during which symptoms may develop. This virus is typically transmitted through rodents but can, in rare cases, spread from human to human. The mortality rate among those infected is reported to exceed one-third.
In the UK, 20 British citizens evacuated from the MV Hondius were isolated in a hospital in North West England on Sunday. After arriving in Manchester, they were transported by bus to Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside, where they will be monitored for 72 hours.
Local National Health Service (NHS) officials released a joint statement, explaining that these individuals will be kept in a controlled environment for clinical evaluation and testing. If they show no symptoms, they will be allowed to return home, but they must self-isolate for an additional 42 days.
The British government clarified that all passengers and crew members returning from the MV Hondius will undergo a total of 45 days of monitoring and isolation. Additionally, efforts are underway to trace contacts of infected or symptomatic individuals.
These emergency measures have been implemented in response to the Hantavirus outbreak linked to the MV Hondius. Meanwhile, the British government has dispatched a special military and medical team to its remote overseas territory of Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic, where a British citizen has also tested positive for Hantavirus.
The Ministry of Defence reported that six paratroopers and two military medics from the 16 Air Assault Brigade were parachuted onto the island, along with oxygen cylinders and medical supplies delivered by air.
Tristan da Cunha, with a population of 221, is considered the most remote inhabited overseas territory of Britain. It lacks an airstrip and is typically accessible only by sea.
The Ministry of Defence stated that this is the first time the British Army has deployed medical personnel via parachute for humanitarian assistance. The British government has assured the public that the risk posed by this virus is “very low.”
Leave a Comment