Three Dead and Several Critically Ill as Rare Possible Human Transmission Occurs on MV Hondius

Cape Verde, May 6, 2026 —

A serious hantavirus outbreak has been confirmed aboard the MV Hondius, a Dutch expedition cruise ship operated by Oceanwide Expeditions. As of today, seven people have been infected — two confirmed and five suspected — resulting in three deaths and at least one passenger fighting for life in intensive care.

The luxury expedition vessel departed Ushuaia, Argentina, on April 1 for a month-long “Polar and Atlantic Odyssey” cruise that included landings in Antarctica, South Georgia, Tristan da Cunha, St. Helena, and Ascension Island. The ship is now anchored off the coast of Cape Verde in West Africa, where 147 remaining passengers and crew from 23 countries are under strict quarantine.

The first victim, a 70-year-old Dutch man, fell ill on April 6 with fever, headache, and gastrointestinal symptoms. He died onboard on April 11 from severe respiratory failure. His wife later died in South Africa on April 26 after accompanying his body to St. Helena. Laboratory tests eventually confirmed both had contracted hantavirus.

A British passenger who became severely ill with pneumonia was medically evacuated from Ascension Island on April 27. He tested positive for hantavirus on May 2 and remains in intensive care in South Africa. A German woman died onboard on May 2, becoming the third fatality. Two other passengers and two crew members are showing serious symptoms and are awaiting urgent evacuation.

Health authorities were only able to identify the outbreak after laboratory confirmation in South Africa nearly a month after the first death. The World Health Organization was notified on May 2 and is now leading an international response involving South Africa, Cape Verde, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Argentina.

Hantaviruses are typically transmitted to humans through contact with infected rodent droppings, urine, or saliva. Human-to-human transmission is extremely rare but has been documented with the Andes virus strain found in parts of Argentina and Chile. Investigators believe the virus may have been introduced either during shore excursions in South America or by rodents that boarded the vessel. Limited person-to-person spread among close contacts is now being investigated as a possible factor.

Symptoms usually begin with flu-like signs — high fever, muscle aches, fatigue, and headaches — before progressing in severe cases to hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS), which causes fluid buildup in the lungs, respiratory failure, and shock. The fatality rate for HPS can reach 35–50%. There is no specific treatment, only supportive intensive care.

The ship is currently under maximum isolation protocols, with passengers confined to their cabins. Medical teams in full protective gear have boarded from Cape Verde. Spanish authorities have offered to let the vessel dock in the Canary Islands for a full epidemiological investigation, extensive disinfection, and contact tracing.

The World Health Organization has assessed the global risk as low, emphasizing that hantavirus does not spread easily between people. Contact tracing is underway for passengers who shared flights with infected individuals. Officials stress that rapid medical intervention greatly improves survival rates.

This outbreak serves as a sobering reminder of the zoonotic dangers associated with remote expedition cruising, where passengers frequently make landings in wildlife-rich areas. While norovirus outbreaks are common on cruise ships, a hantavirus incident represents a far more dangerous biological event.

Oceanwide Expeditions has expressed deep condolences to the families of the deceased and stated that passenger and crew safety remains its highest priority. The company is cooperating fully with international health authorities.

Further testing and genetic sequencing of the virus are continuing as the ship prepares to sail toward the Canary Islands. Health officials continue to monitor the situation closely.

This is a developing story.