“It’s not COVID,” a WHO spokesperson told reporters at a press briefing in Geneva, as the agency continues to coordinate the response to the deadly outbreak on a cruise liner docked in Cape Verde.
To date, three people have died and several others have fallen ill aboard the Dutch-flagged ship Hondius, sparking a broad international public health response involving countries in Europe, Africa and Latin America.
“Let’s not forget that couples close to … a flight attendant who took care of the sick woman who died shortly afterward and who was feeling extremely ill, we are getting negative test results. This should now convince almost everyone that this is a dangerous virus, but only to the person who is actually infected. And the risk to the general population remains absolutely low” said WHO spokesperson Christian Lindmeier.
Eight cases of infection have been reported so far, including five laboratory-confirmed infections and three suspected cases linked to the rare Andean strain of hantavirus, according to the WHO.
No comparison with COVID
“I must emphasize again and again, even those who share cabins do not appear to be both infected in some cases…it doesn’t spread anything like the spread of COVID” said Mr. Lindmeier.
Beyond the Hantius cruise liner, where the outbreak was first reported, contact tracing of potentially infected people continued.
“It’s about tracking everyone. It’s about looking at seating lists on planes, on ships, and maybe even more so following someone’s footsteps, seeing where they might have been or might have been in close contact,” Lindmeier said.
According to the WHO, transmission generally requires close and prolonged contact, particularly between household members, intimate partners or healthcare professionals.
Despite this, the woman whose infected husband is being treated in a Swiss hospital “has not shown any symptoms and has been self-isolating… So this shows you, again, fortunately, that apparently the virus is not that contagious,” Lindmeier said.
The first known patient developed symptoms on April 6 and later died aboard the ship. His wife also became ill and died after being evacuated to South Africa, where laboratory tests confirmed a hantavirus infection.
Rodent risk
Before boarding, the couple had traveled through Argentina, Chile and Uruguay to observe birds, including visiting sites where rodent species known to carry the virus are present.
Another passenger died on May 2, and although one man remains in intensive care in South Africa, the WHO said his condition was improving. Other patients were transferred to hospitals in the Netherlands for treatment.
The WHO said no passengers or crew currently remaining on the ship have symptoms.
Hantaviruses are zoonotic viruses carried by rodents and are generally transmitted to humans through contact with infected animals or with their urine, saliva or feces (order WHO hantavirus fact sheet here).
The Andean strain, present in parts of Latin America, is the only known hantavirus capable of limiting human-to-human transmission.
The outbreak triggered action under the International Health Regulations, the global framework designed to coordinate responses to cross-border health threats.
The WHO said it was working closely with authorities in Cape Verde, Spain, the Netherlands, South Africa, the United Kingdom and Argentina, alongside the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control.
