Canadian from hantavirus-hit cruise ship tests positive
TL;DR
A Canadian passenger from the MV Hondius cruise ship, affected by a hantavirus outbreak, has tested presumptively positive for the virus. This case increases the total infections to 11, with three fatalities linked to the outbreak.
Key points
- A Canadian tested presumptively positive for hantavirus
- The case is linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship outbreak
- Total infections among passengers now at 11
- Three fatalities reported, two confirmed with the virus
- Four individuals are isolating on Vancouver Island
Mentioned in this story
A Canadian who sailed on the cruise ship MV Hondius which was hit by a hantavirus outbreak in April has tested positive for the disease, officials in the province of British Columbia say.
The individual, one of four people isolating on Vancouver Island after leaving the ship, had developed mild symptoms.
The province's senior health officer said the four had not had any contact with the public since arriving in Canada.
The case brings the total number of infections to 11, all among cruise passengers. Three people who travelled on the ship have died, with two confirmed to have had the virus.
British Columbia health officer Bonnie Henry said the person's test came back as a presumptive positive on Friday, meaning that it still remains to be confirmed by a national microbiology lab.
"Clearly, this is not what we hoped for, but it is what we planned for," she said, quoted by national broadcaster CBC.
"I want to emphasise that hantavirus is a very different virus than the other respiratory viruses that we've been dealing with - like Covid, like influenza, like measles - and it remains one that we do not consider to have pandemic potential," Dr Henry added.
Of the six Canadians who were on the Dutch ship, two are self-isolating at their home in Ontario.
Two more couples are isolating on Vancouver Island, one from British Columbia and the other from Yukon. The person who tested positive is from Yukon.
None of the other five have tested positive so far.
The cruise ship, which set sail from Argentina on 1 April, finally docked in Tenerife, in Spain's Canary Islands, less than a week ago, allowing its 147 passengers and crew from 23 countries to leave and go into isolation.
The WHO has recommended 42 days of isolation for each person. The Canadians were initially required to isolate for 21 days but Dr Henry said that timeline could now be adjusted.
Hantaviruses are usually carried by rodents, but human transmission of the Andes strain - which the WHO believes some of the ship's passengers contracted in South America - is possible.
Symptoms can include fever, extreme fatigue, muscle aches, stomach pain, vomiting, diarrhoea and shortness of breath.
Officials say the risk of a major outbreak is very low.
Q&A
What is the current number of hantavirus infections from the MV Hondius cruise ship?
The total number of hantavirus infections among passengers from the MV Hondius cruise ship has reached 11.
How many people have died from the hantavirus outbreak on the MV Hondius?
Three people who traveled on the MV Hondius cruise ship have died, with two confirmed to have had the hantavirus.
What symptoms did the Canadian passenger from the MV Hondius experience?
The Canadian passenger developed mild symptoms after testing presumptively positive for hantavirus.
