Image Source: India Today
World – Despite two reported deaths from hantavirus linked to passengers aboard an international cruise ship, the Department of Health is urging the public not to panic.
The DoH confirmed it had been informed by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases of deaths and critical illness among passengers of the MV Hondius, a vessel that departed Ushuaia, Southern Argentina, bound for the Canary Islands via Cape Verde.
The first, a 70-year-old male, fell ill en route and passed away on arrival at St Helena Island. His spouse, a 69-year-old woman, collapsed at OR Tambo International Airport while connecting a flight home to the Netherlands and also died. A third passenger, a British national, was medically evacuated to a private facility in Sandton after his condition failed to improve at Ascension Island.
“His laboratory test results came back positive for Hantavirus, a rare but potentially deadly virus transmitted primarily by rodents. The patient is still in critical condition in isolation, but receiving medical attention,” the department said.
The department was working with the NICD and the Gauteng Health Department to conduct contact tracing, identifying and monitoring individuals who may have been exposed to the infected persons to stop potential spread.
What You Need to Know About Hantavirus
Hantavirus is a rare virus carried by rodents and passed to humans through contact with infected urine, droppings, or saliva. The highest risk comes from time spent in enclosed, poorly ventilated, or rodent-infested spaces.
Symptoms appear one to six weeks after exposure, starting with fever, headache, muscle aches, and abdominal pain, before progressing in severe cases to respiratory failure and shock.
There is no vaccine or antiviral treatment, and survival depends on early access to intensive care and close management of respiratory and cardiac complications, according to the World Health Organisation.
Prevention centres on limiting contact with rodents, keeping homes and workplaces clean, sealing entry points, storing food securely, and avoiding dry sweeping in areas where rodent droppings are present.
“In our view, there is no need for the public to panic because only two patients from the cruise ship have been within our borders. The World Health Organisation is coordinating a multi-country response with all affected islands and countries to contain further spread of the disease,” the department said.
