Deadly hantavirus outbreak on ship poses ‘low’ risk to wider public, WHO says – CBC
No symptoms among 4 Canadians still on board, 3 others now in Ontario, Quebec being monitored
May 07, 2026
The World Health Organization on Thursday stressed that the risk to the general public is “low” even though the Andean strain of hantavirus — found in several people who were on board a stricken cruise ship — can in rare cases be transmitted among humans.
The WHO says it is working on step-by-step guidance for when the MV Hondius reaches Spain’s Canary Islands, which is expected early Sunday, when dozens of its remaining passengers disembark and travel home. None of those passengers, which include four Canadians, currently have any symptoms.
Three people — a Dutch couple and a German national — have died in the outbreak on the Hondius. Eight others are suspected to have contracted the virus, according to the WHO.
“This is not coronavirus, this is a very different virus,” Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO director of epidemic and pandemic management, told a news conference. “This is not the same situation we were in six years ago.”
Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/hantavirus-outbreak-cruise-ship-9.7190707
