Overview
- Investigators say the outbreak likely began with passenger exposure during shore excursions in Argentina after the MV Hondius departed in early May and Argentine teams are probing rodent contact at a reported garbage‑dump stop.
- WHO said Sunday there are 12 confirmed cases and three deaths tied to the ship and described the situation as 'stable for now' while all passengers and crew remain in quarantine and under health monitoring.
- The cruise ship is docked in Rotterdam for decontamination and countries have repatriated passengers to isolation facilities with a 42‑day observation window because the Andes virus can have an incubation period up to eight weeks.
- HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. signed a targeted PREP Act declaration to remove legal barriers and speed research and medical response work on the Andes strain.
- Private labs have moved quickly to support studies, with Ireland’s Assay Genie launching rapid ELISA antibody kits for research use, even as experts note that the lapse in NIH/NIAID CREID funding has reduced sustained federal support for hantavirus preparedness.