South African Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi announced on Wednesday, May 6, that the strain of hantavirus detected in one of the cruise ship passengers, who was transferred to a South African hospital, is the Andean strain, the only one transmissible between humans.
Two passengers from the cruise ship affected by a hantavirus outbreak were transferred to Johannesburg; one has died and the other remains hospitalized.
“Initial tests show that this is, in fact, the Andean strain. This is the only one, among the 38 known strains, that can be transmitted from one person to another,” explained Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi during a parliamentary session.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Sunday (3) three deaths linked to a possible hantavirus outbreak, which can cause acute respiratory syndrome, aboard the ship.
The vessel, carrying 149 people (88 passengers) of 23 nationalities, was traveling between Ushuaia, Argentina—from where it departed on March 20—and the Canary Islands, with stops in the South Atlantic for wildlife-watching tours.
According to the WHO, reports of illness on board were received between April 6 and 28, primarily fever and gastrointestinal symptoms, with rapid progression to pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, and shock.
The cruise ship is anchored off the coast of Praia, Cape Verde, but, as the WHO announced on Tuesday (5), it will head to the Canary Islands, Spain, where a “comprehensive epidemiological investigation” will be conducted.
The WHO currently assesses the risk to the global population from this outbreak as low and says it will continue to monitor the epidemiological situation and update the risk assessment.
Source: Lusa
