An outbreak of the rare and dangerous hantavirus aboard the Dutch-flagged cruise ship MV Hondius has left three passengers dead, forced the medical evacuation of several others, and triggered an international health scare. While the unsettling news has prompted concerns of another widespread virus outbreak akin to COVID-19 or Avian flu, the World Health Organization has stressed that the overall public health risk from the Hondius outbreak is low. Here’s what we know so far.

. How did the outbreak start?

In a bulletin on Monday, the WHO said that it was first contacted about a “cluster of severe acute respiratory illness” aboard the Hondius on May 2 including two deaths and one passenger who was critically ill. Per the organization, the ship left Ushuaia, Argentina on April 1 and made numerous stops including mainland Antarctica, Tristan da Cunha, Saint Helena, South Georgia, Nightingale Island, as well as Ascension Island located in the South Atlantic Ocean.

🌎 Map showing the route of the MV Hondius from Ushuaia (Argentina) to Cape Verde [2/2] pic.twitter.com/ejyrjy2j8J— AFP News Agency (@AFP) May 6, 2026

🌎 Map showing the route of the MV Hondius from Ushuaia (Argentina) to Cape Verde [2/2] pic.twitter.com/ejyrjy2j8J

In the days since, the number of deaths has risen to three. According to the WHO, the first case was an adult man presented with a fever, mild diarrhea and a headache on April 6, but later died on April 11 after developing respiratory distress. The second was an adult woman who left the ship from Saint Helena on April 24 while reportedly experiencing gastrointestinal symptoms. Her condition worsened while traveling on an April 25 flight to Johannesburg, South Africa and she passed away after arriving at a hospital on April 26. In the third case, a woman died on May 2 after presenting with symptoms on April 28.

The New York Times reports that the first two deaths from the outbreak were a couple, a 70-year-old man from the Netherlands and his 69-year old wife, and the pair had reportedly traveled in South America, specifically Argentina, prior to boarding the ship. PCR testing later confirmed hantavirus infection in the wife’s case. The third fatal case is reported to be a German woman.

According to the Associated Press, Argentina’s Ministry of Health has been tracing the travel of the Dutch couple, who had been on a........

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