Hantavirus is one of the deadliest infections in the world. The CDC says hantavirus pulmonary syndrome is “fatal in nearly 4 in 10 people who are infected.” It’s also one of the hardest infections to catch from another person.
Of every known hantavirus strain, only Andes virus has ever been documented spreading between humans. It’s carried by the pygmy rice rat in Patagonia.
Even Andes almost never passes person-to-person. The spread requires prolonged close contact with someone already symptomatic. The documented chains are cabin mates, spouses, parents and children sharing beds.
Every other hantavirus on Earth moves only one direction: rodent to human. People catch it by breathing in dust from rodent urine, droppings, or saliva, almost always inside barns, sheds, or cabins where rodents have been nesting. There are no human carriers.
Most Americans last heard about hantavirus in early 2025, when Betsy Arakawa died of it at the New Mexico home she shared with Gene Hackman. Investigators traced her exposure to rodents in the house. No human had given it to her.
The benchmark for what Andes can do once it does jump is Epuyén, Argentina, in late 2018. A single rodent introduction infected one person. He went to a birthday party. That party and the weddings that followed produced 34 confirmed infections and 11 deaths over 3 months.
The MV Hondius gave Andes the same conditions on a larger scale. It departed Ushuaia, Argentina on April 1 with 88 passengers and 59 crew for a 3-week expedition through Antarctica, South Georgia, and Tristan da Cunha. Passengers shared cabins and ate communally for weeks.
Argentine investigators told the Associated Press the Dutch couple’s likely exposure happened on land before they ever set foot on the ship, during a stop at an Ushuaia landfill. WHO infectious disease lead Maria Van Kerkhove has said the working theory is that the original infections occurred on land near Ushuaia before the ship departed, with limited spread between passengers in shared cabins after that.
A Dutch man around 70 became the first known case. His symptoms started about April 6, five days into the voyage. He died April 11. The captain announced it as a non-infectious natural death because nothing had been diagnosed yet. His body was offloaded at Saint Helena on April 24.
His wife, who shared his cabin, fell ill in the same window. She was evacuated to Johannesburg and confirmed positive after she died on April 26. A German woman died on board on May 2. Two confirmed cases are now hospitalized in Johannesburg and Zurich. Three more passengers were evacuated on May 6. Crew began falling ill later in the voyage.
Roughly 23 to 40 passengers had already disembarked at earlier stops before the cluster was understood. They’re being monitored in the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Australia, and Switzerland. Hantavirus has an incubation period of 1 to 8 weeks. Treatment is supportive only. There is no antiviral medication and no vaccine.
The MV Hondius is currently anchored off Cape Verde. Spain has expressed caution about allowing the ship to dock in the Canary Islands. WHO has classified the global public risk as low.
FAQ
Is hantavirus spread person-to-person? For almost every strain on Earth, no. Andes virus, the strain on this cruise, is the only one with documented person-to-person spread, and even that is rare. The spread requires prolonged close contact: cabin mates, caregivers, partners, or direct exposure to bodily fluids while the patient is already symptomatic. The virus is not airborne the way flu or COVID is. Walking past someone, sitting near them on a plane, or sharing a public space does not transmit it.
How do you normally catch hantavirus? From rodents, almost always. People breathe in airborne particles from rodent urine, droppings, or saliva. The classic exposure is cleaning a shed, garage, cabin, or campsite without a mask while rodents have been nesting there. Bites are rare. Contact with another person is not a normal source.
Is this a new strain? No. Andes virus was first identified in Argentina in 1995. The 2018 Epuyén outbreak was the largest known person-to-person chain, with 34 confirmed cases. The strain on the MV Hondius is the same one researchers have studied for nearly 30 years.
What are the symptoms? Symptoms start 1 to 8 weeks after exposure and resemble the flu at first: headache, fever, fatigue, chills, muscle pain, and nausea. They can shift fast to severe shortness of breath, fluid in the lungs, and shock. Anyone with sudden difficulty breathing after possible exposure should go to the emergency room.
How deadly is it? About 35 to 40 percent of patients die once the disease progresses to severe lung involvement. The virus does not transmit easily, so total cases stay low. WHO has rated the public risk as low.
Is there treatment or a vaccine? No targeted antiviral exists, and there is no approved vaccine. Treatment is supportive: oxygen, fluids, and mechanical ventilation when needed. Early hospital care significantly improves survival odds.
Is this a pandemic threat? They say no because the virus does not transmit through casual contact or routine travel. Public health agencies are focused on contact tracing for people who shared cabins or close quarters with confirmed patients on the cruise.
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