At least three people have died and others have fallen seriously ill in what health authorities suspect is a hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship stranded in the Atlantic Ocean, raising urgent questions about disease prevention protocols and passenger safety on commercial vessels.
The World Health Organization and South Africa's Department of Health confirmed Sunday that an investigation was underway and that at least one case of hantavirus had been confirmed. One patient remained in intensive care in a South African hospital, and the agency said it was working with authorities to evacuate two others with symptoms from the ship.
Passengers Stranded Without Medical Care
The Dutch company that operates the cruise said the ship was sitting off the coast of Cape Verde, an island nation off Africa's west coast, and that local authorities were assisting but had not allowed anyone to disembark. The company said the two sick people onboard requiring urgent medical care were crew members, leaving them dependent on remote evacuation for treatment that could determine their survival.
Around 150 tourists were onboard at the time of the outbreak, South Africa's health department said. Several online tour operators said the Hondius, which is described as a specialist polar cruise ship, usually travels with around 70 crew members.
How the Outbreak Unfolded
South Africa's Department of Health said the Dutch-flagged MV Hondius had left Argentina around three weeks ago for a cruise that included visits to Antarctica, the Falkland Islands and other stops, and was due to ultimately head to Spain's Canary Islands on the other side of the Atlantic.
The first victim was a 70-year-old man who died on the ship and whose body was removed in the British territory of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic, the department said. The man's wife collapsed at an airport in South Africa trying to take a flight to her home country of the Netherlands, and she died at a nearby hospital. The department identified the patient in intensive care in a hospital in Johannesburg as a British national. It said that person fell ill near Ascension Island, another remote island in the Atlantic, after the ship left Saint Helena and was transferred from there to South Africa.
Oceanwide Expeditions, the company that runs the cruise, said the third victim's body was still onboard the ship in Cape Verde and its priority was to ensure the two crew members who were ill received medical care. The company said, "Local health authorities have visited the vessel to assess the condition of the two symptomatic individuals. They are yet to make a decision regarding the transfer of these individuals into medical care in Cape Verde."
Understanding Hantavirus Risk
Hantaviruses are found throughout the world and are spread mainly by contact with the urine or feces of infected rodents such as rats and mice. They gained attention after the late actor Gene Hackman's wife, Betsy Arakawa, died from hantavirus infection in New Mexico one year ago. Hackman died around a week later at their home from heart disease.
Hantaviruses cause two serious syndromes, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a severe disease that affects the lungs, and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome, a severe disease that affects the kidneys. WHO said hantavirus infections can be spread between people, though they are rare, and that there is no specific treatment or cure, but early medical attention can increase the chance of survival.
Public Health Response
The World Health Organization said in a statement to The Associated Press, "WHO is aware of and supporting a public health event involving a cruise vessel sailing in the Atlantic Ocean," and added, "Detailed investigations are ongoing, including further laboratory testing, and epidemiological investigations. Medical care and support are being provided to passengers and crew. Sequencing of the virus is also ongoing."
WHO said it was working with national authorities and the ship's operators to conduct a "full public health risk assessment" and provide support for those still onboard. South Africa's National Institute for Communicable Diseases was conducting contact tracing in the Johannesburg region to identify if other people were exposed to the infected passengers in South Africa.
Why This Matters:
This outbreak highlights the vulnerability of passengers and crew on commercial cruise vessels to infectious disease emergencies, particularly when ships operate in remote waters far from adequate medical facilities. With no specific treatment or cure for hantavirus and early medical attention critical for survival, the delays in evacuating sick passengers and crew members from the stranded vessel raise serious questions about emergency response protocols and the adequacy of health and safety regulations governing the cruise industry. The presence of rodent-borne disease on a passenger vessel suggests potential gaps in sanitation and pest control standards that put both workers and paying customers at risk. For the 150 tourists and approximately 70 crew members aboard, the outbreak has transformed what was marketed as a specialized polar expedition into a public health emergency, with some still awaiting evacuation while authorities conduct investigations. The incident underscores the need for stronger international health standards and oversight mechanisms to protect people on vessels operating across multiple jurisdictions in international waters.