WHO Probes Deadly Hantavirus Cluster on Cruise Ship Off Cabo Verde

Overview

• WHO, which on Tuesday said three passengers had died, reported one lab‑confirmed infection, five suspected cases, and a British patient in intensive care in Johannesburg as the vessel stayed offshore near Praia.
• Officials said the working hypothesis is limited spread between very close contacts consistent with the Andes strain, and they stressed that the overall risk to the public is low.
• The voyage left Ushuaia in late March, a 70‑year‑old passenger died on April 11 with his body later taken to St. Helena, his 69‑year‑old wife died after evacuation to South Africa, and the Dutch foreign ministry confirmed the pair were Dutch nationals.
• Cabo Verde barred disembarkation during the probe, WHO coordinated medical evacuations, and Spanish health authorities later said the ship would head to the Canary Islands after urgent cases were handled in Cabo Verde, with about 149 people still aboard.
• Hantaviruses are carried by rodents and usually infect people who inhale contaminated dust, and the Andes strain has shown rare person‑to‑person spread, with no specific antivirals or vaccines and care focused on intensive respiratory support when patients worsen quickly.