Health officials urge vigilance as suspected hantavirus outbreak prompts evacuations

Health officials are urging vigilance after a cruise ship off Cabo Verde became the focus of a multi-country hantavirus investigation.

The World Health Organization said on May 4 that seven cases linked to the ship had been identified, including two laboratory-confirmed hantavirus infections and five suspected cases. The cluster includes three deaths, one critically ill patient in South Africa and three people with mild symptoms.

The vessel, Oceanwide Expeditions' m/v Hondius, was carrying 147 passengers and crew and was moored off the coast of Cabo Verde as of May 4. WHO said the public risk remains low, but investigations, isolation measures, evacuations and laboratory work are continuing.

Oceanwide Expeditions said two crew members still had acute respiratory symptoms and required urgent medical care. In an updated medical timeline, the operator said the ship remained off Cape Verde while evacuation planning and additional care were being arranged.

The ship had departed Ushuaia, Argentina, on April 1 and followed a South Atlantic itinerary. Officials have not yet publicly confirmed exactly where the infections occurred, and the source of the outbreak remains under investigation.

For now, health agencies are focused on moving sick crew members to treatment and determining whether any transmission happened on board or before boarding.