Dutch passengers ordered into six-week home quarantine after deadly hantavirus outbreak
Dutch authorities have ordered all Dutch passengers aboard the cruise ship Hondius into six weeks of home quarantine following a deadly outbreak of the Andes variant of hantavirus that has now killed three people, NOS reports.
Health Minister Hermans and Foreign Affairs Minister Berendsen outlined the quarantine decision and details of the outbreak in a letter to the Tweede Kamer. At the same time, the World Health Organization confirmed six laboratory-confirmed hantavirus infections linked to the ship and reported two additional suspected cases.
The Dutch-flagged cruise ship Hondius is expected to arrive in Tenerife in the Canary Islands on Sunday morning. Roughly 150 people remain on board, including an estimated 13 Dutch passengers and crew members. So far, three people have died in connection with the outbreak, including a Dutch couple and a 65-year-old German woman.
Four infected patients remain hospitalized. One additional German woman who had close contact with a deceased patient tested negative after evacuation and is currently under observation in a hospital in Germany.
Dutch officials said all Dutch passengers will be repatriated as soon as possible after arrival in Tenerife, where Spanish authorities will continue medical screening in coordination with doctors and epidemiologists already deployed aboard the vessel.
Upon return, Dutch passengers and any necessary crew members will undergo a 6-week home quarantine.
Authorities said that, as far as known, none of the approximately 150 people still on board currently show symptoms.
According to the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), the Andes variant of hantavirus has a mortality rate estimated between 20 and 35 percent. Officials also noted that it is the only hantavirus variant for which there are indications of possible human-to-human transmission, typically requiring prolonged close contact and often occurring before symptoms appear.
The virus is primarily spread through contact with rodent urine or droppings, particularly from mice and rats. Health authorities stressed that this transmission pattern is fundamentally different from highly contagious respiratory viruses such as the coronavirus.
Despite the outbreak, Dutch ministers emphasized that RIVM sees no indication that the virus will lead to a pandemic.
A global tracing effort is underway to monitor potential spread following contact with infected individuals.
In Singapore and Denmark, three people who had contact with infected individuals tested negative for hantavirus, according to monitoring updates.