In April, there was a cruise ship sailing from Argentina to Cape Verde, carrying passengers that showed symptoms including fever, gastrointestinal problems, acute respiratory distress and shock, and pneumonia. Since April 11, 3 people have died. As of May 8, there have been 8 suspected cases of Hantavirus, 5 of which have been confirmed.
Hantaviruses are a large group of viruses that originate from rodents. The virus spreads through inhaling rat droppings, urine, or saliva. There are multiple specific genetic variants of the virus, also known as strains, such as Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome (HFRS), which involves a kidney disease that is fatal in 10% cases. These strains are often found in Europe and Asia. Another strain, which causes Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS), is found in the Americas and kills about one-third of those infected. The strain found on the ship is confirmed to be Andes Virus, which leads to HPS.
Contrary to what many think, it is not easily spread from human to human — yes, it can spread from human to human —but that is through long periods of contact. According to the Guardian, the UK Health Security Agency and the World Health Organization (WHO) have stressed that the risk to the wider public is low. “This is not Covid, this is not influenza; it spreads very, very differently,” said Kerkhove.
Many have speculated on where this virus might have even originated from — after all, the passengers are on a luxury cruise ship. Public health officials have tracked down the whereabouts of the passengers prior to boarding, and they found that a Dutch couple was on a bird-watching endeavor in parts of Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay, where rat droppings are known to be.
Many passengers have returned to their home country. There, public officials keep a close watch on the situation. Some have been rushed to hospitals, while others are carefully self-isolating, looking out for symptoms.
This situation has been met with scrutiny on social media. Many TikTok users made comments about the ship going off to a remote island, or just staying floating in the middle of the ocean. Many have also made comments about the passengers being selfish for claiming they want to go home to their families, believing that it shouldn’t be hard to stay on board a luxury cruise for eight more weeks while the symptoms are monitored.
The likelihood of Hantavirus blossoming into another full world epidemic is very low, simply because it does not spread the same way as COVID, and for human-to-human contagion, one must spend prolonged periods of close time together.