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CDC Closes Hantavirus Outbreak Response on Cruise Ship
CDC ends hantavirus response on MV Hondius cruise ship. All 18 exposed Americans completed quarantine, none tested positive. Three died. Andes strain's human-to-human transmission raises future cruise risk.
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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday it has officially ended its response to a hantavirus outbreak tied to the MV Hondius cruise ship. All 18 Americans exposed to the virus completed a 42-day quarantine at the Nebraska Medicine Regional Emerging Special Pathogen Treatment Center in Omaha. None tested positive. Another 19 Americans who had left the ship before the outbreak became known were monitored at home, the CDC said.
The Oceanwide Expeditions vessel set sail from Argentina on April 1 with 175 passengers and crew from 23 countries. Twelve cases were confirmed, one suspected. Three people died.
CDC officials credited the quarantine protocol with preventing further spread. The outbreak involved the Andes strain of hantavirus, which can pass between humans. Most hantavirus strains spread only from animals to people. The six-week incubation period meant a long monitoring window was necessary.