Passengers From Virus-Hit Cruise Ship Fly Home as CDC Says Outbreak Threat Is Low
Hantavirus
Key Facts & Current Situation
- Transmission: People usually get infected by breathing in air contaminated with the urine, droppings, or saliva of infected rodents. It can also spread through bites or touching contaminated surfaces.
- Recent Outbreak (May 2026): A cluster of cases involving the Andes virus strain was recently linked to a cruise ship, the MV Hondius, in the Atlantic Ocean. As of May 11, 2026, several Americans from the ship have been repatriated to quarantine centers in the U.S. for monitoring.
- Public Risk: Health officials, including the CDC and WHO, currently assess the risk to the general public as extremely low.
Disease Types & Symptoms
The specific symptoms depend on the strain of the virus:
- Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS): Common in the Americas. It starts with flu-like symptoms (fever, muscle aches, fatigue) and can rapidly progress to severe shortness of breath as the lungs fill with fluid. The fatality rate is roughly 38% to 40%.
- Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome (HFRS)
: More common in Europe and Asia. It causes fever, internal bleeding, and kidney failure.
Human-to-Human Spread
Most hantaviruses do not spread between people. The Andes virus is the only known strain capable of person-to-person transmission, though it typically requires prolonged, very close contact.
Prevention & Treatment
- Prevention: The best way to stay safe is to avoid rodent-infested areas. If cleaning areas where rodents have been, use a disinfectant or bleach solution to wet the area before wiping; never sweep or vacuum, as this can kick virus particles into the air.
- Treatment: There is no specific cure or vaccine for hantavirus. Treatment focuses on supportive care in a hospital setting, such as oxygen therapy or mechanical ventilation for those with respiratory distress.
Passengers Are Evacuated From Cruise Ship Tied to Hantavirus Outbreak
The Dutch-flagged cruise ship departed from southern Argentina on April 1 and followed an itinerary across the South Atlantic with multiple stops in remote islands.
The ship, the MV Hondius, arrived at the port of Granadilla de Abona in Tenerife, the largest of the islands, early on Sunday morning, one month after a person died on board. Passengers and crew members began disembarking in small groups on Sunday, wearing masks and blue personal protective equipment.
Small groups of passengers and crew left the ship after it anchored off Spain’s Canary Islands on Sunday. Those aboard were expected to be flown to their home countries. Passengers and crew from a cruise ship hit by a deadly hantavirus outbreak were evacuated on Sunday after the vessel anchored off Spain’s Canary Islands. Global health officials have sought to calm fears about the passengers’ return to their home countries by vowing to closely monitor any signs of disease.
Eighteen U.S. cruise passengers returned to the U.S. early Monday, after weeks aboard the MV Hondius. The Americans disembarked the cruise in the Canary Islands on Sunday and boarded a medical repatriation flight, arranged by the U.S. government, bound for Nebraska.
What's ahead for the 18 American passengers
After landing at the Offutt Air Force Base near Omaha, most passengers headed to the National Quarantine Unit at the University of Nebraska Medical Center for an initial evaluation, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The 18 U.S. passengers — including one dual U.S.-British citizen — are among the total of nearly 150 people who were on the ship from 23 different countries. They've endured in the midst of a hantavirus outbreak which has caused at least eight cases, including three deaths, according to the World Health Organization. Sixteen of the U.S. passengers remain in Nebraska, including one passenger who tested "mildly" positive for hantavirus and is staying in biocontainment at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. Two American passengers continued on to Atlanta — a couple, one of whom is showing symptoms —where they are staying in biocontainment in a specialized facility at Emory University. Also on Monday, a French woman tested positive for hantavirus. That brings the case count for the hantavirus outbreak to at least nine, including three deaths, according to the World Health Organization on Monday.
Unlike COVID, which was a novel pathogenic strain when it emerged, scientists have been studying hantaviruses — and specifically the Andes variant which caused this outbreak — for decades. This strain of hantavirus can be deadly, but it isn't considered to be very contagious between people. It tends to take prolonged, close contact with someone who's showing symptoms.
So far, most of the U.S. passengers are well. But symptoms can take up to 42 days after exposure to show up, according to the CDC. Health officials said the U.S. passengers would all be assessed clinically upon arrival. There were about 150 people aboard the ship when it arrived at the Canary Islands, including crew members, passengers and four medical staff members who boarded the vessel when it was anchored off the coast of Cape Verde, an island archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean.
The World Health Organization has said that the risk of the outbreak to the public is low.
Since April 11, three passengers have died and five other people have fallen ill after showing symptoms of hantavirus, a rare family of viruses carried by rodents, according to the W.H.O. Although human-to-human transmission of the hantavirus is rare, W.H.O. officials said the strain that had infected patients from the ship, called the Andes strain, was the only one known to spread among humans. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has activated its 24/7 emergency center in Atlanta to monitor the recent deadly hantavirus outbreak. CDC officials say its center is now operating on a Level 3 response. That's the lowest level of emergency activation.
Tracking possible exposure to the hantavirus
Three people have died aboard the MV Hondius from the virus, the first of whom died nearly a month before officials confirmed hantavirus in a ship passenger. Six U.S. States and 11 other countries are currently monitoring people who disembarked the cruise ship before cases of hantavirus were confirmed, the World Health Organization reported.
In Georgia, two residents who recently returned home are being monitored, state health officials announced on Wednesday
Risk to Americans "extremely low"
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Saturday said the agency had considerable experience with the Andes strain of the hantavirus, offering assurance to the American public that there was low risk of a widespread outbreak. Transmission of the virus from person to person was rare and the risk to the American public remains "extremely low." World Health Organization Director General urged the residents of Tenerife not to panic.
Hantavirus is typically contracted when humans come into contact with rodent urine, saliva or feces. The Andes strain of the virus, however — which is the one currently being monitored aboard the cruise ship — can, in rare instances, transmit person to person.
A Dutch couple and a German woman have died from the virus. The Dutch couple is thought to have come into contact with hantavirus before boarding the ship, during a birdwatching excursion at an Argentine landfill site.
About Hantavirus
Hantaviruses can infect and cause serious disease in people worldwide. People get hantavirus from contact with rodents like rats and mice, especially when exposed to their urine, droppings, and saliva. It can also spread through a bite or scratch by a rodent, but this is rare.
Hantaviruses cause two syndromes. Hantaviruses found in the Western Hemisphere, including here in the United States, can cause hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS). The most common hantavirus that causes HPS in the United States is spread by the deer mouse.
Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) is a group of clinically similar illnesses caused by hantaviruses found mostly in Europe and Asia. However, Seoul virus, a type of hantavirus that causes HFRS, is found worldwide, including in the United States.
Signs and symptoms
Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS)
HPS is a severe and potentially deadly disease that affects the lungs. Symptoms of HPS usually start to show 1 to 8 weeks after contact with an infected rodent.
Early symptoms can include:
- Fatigue
- Fever
- Muscle aches, especially in the large muscle groups like the thighs, hips, back, and sometimes shoulders
About half of all HPS patients also experience:
- Headaches
- Dizziness
- Chills
- Abdominal problems, like nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain
Four to 10 days after the initial phase of illness, the late symptoms of HPS appear. These symptoms include coughing and shortness of breath. Patients might experience tightness in the chest, as the lungs fill with fluid.
HPS can be deadly. Thirty-eight percent of people who develop respiratory symptoms may die from the disease.
Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS)
HFRS is a severe and sometimes deadly disease that affects the kidneys. Symptoms of HFRS usually develop within 1 to 2 weeks after exposure. In rare cases, they may take up to 8 weeks to develop. Initial symptoms begin suddenly and include:
- Intense headaches
- Back and abdominal pain
- Fever/chills
- Nausea
- Blurred vision
People may have flushing of the face, inflammation or redness of the eyes, or a rash. Later symptoms can include:
- Low blood pressure
- Lack of blood flow (acute shock)
- Internal bleeding (vascular leakage)
- Acute kidney failure, which can cause severe fluid overload
The severity of the disease varies depending on the virus causing the infection. Hantaan and Dobrava virus infections usually cause severe symptoms where 5-15% of cases are fatal. In contrast, Seoul, Saaremaa, and Puumala virus infections are usually more moderate with less than 1% dying from the disease. Complete recovery can take several weeks to months.
Reducing risk
Eliminate or minimize contact with rodents in your home, workplace, or campsite to reduce your risk of exposure to hantaviruses. Seal holes and gaps in your home or garage to keep rodents from entering these spaces. Place traps in and around your home to decrease rodent infestation. Clean up any easy-to-get food that might attract rodents.
Diagnosis
Diagnosing hantavirus in a person who has been infected less than 72 hours is difficult. If the initial test is done before the virus can be found, repeat testing is often done 72 hours after symptom start. Early symptoms such as fever, headache muscle aches, nausea, and fatigue are easily confused with influenza.
If you suspect hantavirus disease, see a physician immediately and mention a potential rodent exposure.
State laboratories and CDC can confirm a diagnosis through testing.
Treatment and recovery
There is no specific treatment for hantavirus infection. Patients should receive supportive care, including rest, hydration, and treatment of symptoms.
HPS can cause breathing difficulties, and patients may need breathing support, such as intubation. Intubation is a medical procedure where a tube is placed in the lungs from the mouth to help the patient get oxygen.
HFRS can disrupt kidney function. Patients with HFRS may need dialysis to remove toxins from the blood and maintain the right balance of fluids in the body when the kidneys aren't working well.