Twenty-Two Hantavirus Passengers Set to Depart Liverpool Hospital Isolation
Twenty-two passengers and crew, who were on board the MV Hondius cruise ship during a hantavirus outbreak, are poised to conclude their isolation at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside. These individuals, including 20 British nationals, a UK-resident German national, and a Japanese passenger, have undergone 72 hours of hospital isolation and are now expected to self-isolate at home for an additional 42 days.
Public health authorities are currently assessing whether home isolation is suitable for each individual or if alternative arrangements are necessary. Professor Robin May, Chief Scientific Officer at the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), confirmed earlier in the week that those in hospital were “healthy and asymptomatic,” provided with flats, food, and ongoing care.
A further ten passengers and crew members are being transported to the UK from British territories in the South Atlantic, specifically Saint Helena and Ascension Islands, as a precautionary measure. This decision was made because the NHS in England is considered “well equipped to respond if they become unwell,” according to the UKHSA.
The outbreak has been linked to three fatalities; two individuals are confirmed to have had the virus, including an elderly Dutch man who died prior to testing, his wife, and a German woman. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organisation, stated that while there are “no signs that we are seeing the start of a larger outbreak,” containment efforts persist as “it’s possible we might see more cases.”
The Dutch-flagged MV Hondius had 87 passengers and 60 crew when it docked in Spain’s Canary Islands last week, as reported by its operator, Oceanwide Expeditions. Two British nationals have returned to the US via repatriation flights, and another is due to return to Australia. Two additional British nationals with confirmed hantavirus are receiving treatment in the Netherlands and South Africa. A British man with suspected hantavirus on Tristan da Cunha remains in a stable condition and in isolation. Two more Britons are voluntarily self-isolating at home in the UK, having disembarked the vessel at St Helena on 24 April, before the first case was confirmed.
The MV Hondius commenced its journey on 1 April in Ushuaia, Argentina, initially carrying approximately 150 passengers and crew from 28 countries. Oceanwide Expeditions confirmed that all guests remaining on board after the outbreak was identified have now been repatriated. The vessel is en route to the Netherlands with 25 crew members, two medical professionals, and the body of a German passenger.
