Hantavirus Cluster Situation Report #2

Emergency Manager's Weekly Report
May 8
3 min read

Highlights:

· The World Health Organization (WHO) reported on May 7^th that there are eight cases (5 confirmed, 2 probable & 1 suspected) and three deaths:

o Two people are in stable condition and one patient is asymptomatic and are now in Germany.

o None of the remaining passengers or crew on the ship are currently symptomatic.

o The incubation period can be up to six weeks. Based on this, additional cases will likely occur.

o The cruise ship continues sailing towards the port of Grandilla, Tenerife, with expected arrival to the Canary Islands on May 10th.

o The risk to global public health is rated as low.

· Argentinian officials are conducting environmental surveillance among vectors at the point of origin, Ushuaia, Argentina.

Contact Tracing:

· National and international partners re conducting contact tracing regarding two flights:

o Airlink Flight 4Z 132: 82 passengers and six crew members.

o KLM Flight from Johannesburg to Amsterdam: 50 passengers. This flight was boarded by the Dutch woman who later died. She disembarked because she was considered too unwell for the 12-hour flight. Three people from this flight have developed symptoms.

· There were around 30 passengers who disembarked the M/V Hondius early. Their nationalities included Americans, British, and Singapore. Their national governments are already monitoring these individuals for symptoms.

· The New Jersey Department of Health on May 8^th reported that two residents were potentially exposed to a person who departed from the cruise ship:

o These residents were not passengers on the cruise ship, and the potential exposure occurred during air travel abroad.

o The returning travelers currently do not have symptoms but they will be monitored by public health authorities.

· The Spanish Ministry of Health reported on May 8^th that they have identified two contacts following the death of a Dutch citizen who had traveled on board the cruise ship:

o The first individual will be under quarantine at a hospital center in Catalonia.

o A second individual was located in South Africa. They had previously stayed in Barcelona for a week before returning to her country and is asymptomatic.

o A epidemiological investigation has not identified any close contacts.

Response, Coordination and Investigations:

· WHO has deployed an expert to the M/V Hondius to support a comprehensive medical assessment of all passengers and crew, while gathering critical information to evaluate their risk of infection.

· WHO has also arranged for the shipment of 2,500 diagnostic kits from Argentina to laboratories in five countries to strengthen testing capacity.

· The US. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has deployed a team of epidemiologists and medical professionals to the Canary Islands, where the M/V Hondius is expected to dock:

o The team will conduct an exposure risk assessment for each American passenger and provide recommendations for the level of monitoring required.

Repatriation Efforts:

· WHO is working with the Spanish government and other relevant national authorities to coordinate repatriation plans for the remaining passengers on the cruise ship.

· The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is working on the repatriation of American passengers:

o These individuals are planned to be evacuated on a U.S. government medical repatriation flight to Offutt Air Force Base in Omaha, Nebraska, where they will be transported to the National Quarantine Center at the University of Nebraska, Omaha.

o A CDC team will deploy to support public health assessment of these returning passengers.

Sources:

· WHO’s response to hantavirus cases linked to a cruise ship

· WHO Twitter Page

· CDC Twitter Page

· BEACON Twitter Page

· New Jersey Department of Health Twitter Page

· UK Health Security Agency Twitter Page

· Spain Ministry of Health Twitter Page

· European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control Bluesky Page

Resources

CDC Hantavirus, Andes Fact Sheet (New)