Repatriation raises MV Hondius exposure: 77 travelers now under U.S./Canadian monitoring

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on May 8 that the U.S. government was actively monitoring and responding to a hantavirus outbreak linked to the M/V Hondius and had planned a medical repatriation flight for affected Americans to Omaha, Nebraska. The Public Health Agency of Canada and Global Affairs Canada said Canadian passengers were also being followed after the ship reached the Canary Islands. Nebraska Medicine said on May 13 that 16 passengers from the ship were being monitored in its National Quarantine Unit. The World Health Organization said the outbreak involved Andes virus, a hantavirus strain tied to severe respiratory disease, and assessed the risk to the global population as low. ### How many travelers are now being monitored in the United States and Canada? At least 77 travelers are now under some form of monitoring or follow-up in North America, based on figures released by U.S. and Canadian authorities and the numbers provided in the card context. That total includes 41 Americans being monitored and 36 Canadians contacted for low-risk exposure follow-up, according to the officials described in the reported update, while Nebraska Medicine separately said 16 U.S. passengers were in its quarantine unit as of May 13. (cdc.gov) The CDC said its team was sent to the Canary Islands on May 7 to assess exposure risk among American passengers and determine what level of monitoring each person required. The agency said another CDC team was deployed to Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska to support public health assessment of returning passengers. ### Why did some Americans go to Nebraska instead of home? (nebraskamed.com) Nebraska Medicine said federal partners asked it and the University of Nebraska Medical Center to receive and monitor U.S. citizens from the cruise ship in the National Quarantine Unit on its campus. The hospital said the unit is the only federally funded quarantine unit in the United States and that, as of its latest update, the monitored passengers were well and had no symptoms of illness. (cdc.gov) On May 13, Nebraska Medicine said all 16 passengers from the M/V Hondius were being monitored and assessed in the National Quarantine Unit at the Davis Global Center. The hospital said one passenger who arrived from the Canary Islands early on May 11 was initially admitted to the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit. ### What has Canada said about its passengers? (nebraskamed.com) Canada said on May 10 that consular and public health officials were assisting four Canadian citizens who were still aboard the ship in Tenerife, Spain, and that all passengers had remained asymptomatic under isolation protocols since May 4. Global Affairs Canada said a consular official was on site in Tenerife along with a Public Health Agency of Canada officer, and that provincial and territorial authorities would be involved in active health monitoring after arrival in Canada. (nebraskamed.com) A Canadian rapid risk assessment completed May 8 said six Canadians had been on the vessel when it departed Argentina and four remained on board at that point. The same assessment said the overall risk to the Canadian public was low and that onward spread in Canada was not expected because close, prolonged contact is generally required for person-to-person transmission of Andes virus. (canada.ca) ### What is known about the outbreak on the ship itself? The World Health Organization said on May 8 that the M/V Hondius outbreak had reached eight cases, including three deaths, with six laboratory-confirmed Andes virus infections and two probable cases. WHO said the Dutch-flagged ship had 147 passengers and crew on board at the time of the initial notification and that 34 passengers and crew had previously disembarked. (canada.ca) The CDC said the ship departed Ushuaia, Argentina, on April 1 and traveled through Antarctica, South Georgia Island, Tristan da Cunha, Saint Helena and Ascension Island. The agency said the extent of passengers’ contact with wildlife before or during the expedition remained unknown. ### What are officials saying about the public health risk now? The CDC said the risk to the American public remains “extremely low,” and Canada said the overall risk to the general population in Canada remains low. (who.int) WHO said the risk for passengers and crew on the ship was moderate, while the risk to the global population was low. (cdc.gov) CDC guidance distributed on May 8 said clinicians and health departments should be alert for imported cases, even though broad spread in the United States was considered extremely unlikely. Canada’s public health guidance said person-to-person spread is rare and generally requires close, prolonged contact with someone who is sick. ### What happens next for the passengers still in quarantine or follow-up? (cdc.gov) Nebraska Medicine said it is posting continuing quarantine updates on its hantavirus monitoring page as information becomes available from the hospital and UNMC. Canadian officials said public health monitoring would continue with provincial, territorial and local authorities after returning passengers arrived home, while WHO said international contact tracing was continuing through national focal points. (cdc.gov) (nebraskamed.com)