Diseased Ghost Ship Shows The Dangers Of Globalization

(Photo by AFP via Getty Images)

It’s almost a premise out of a horror movie, or simply a repeat of the past: a ghost ship carrying an incurable disease, slowly chugging through the seas, bringing death and dismay to healthy but unwitting passengers and unlucky humans who come too close.

An outbreak of a nasty, possibly lethal, and yes, incurable hantavirus has been traced to a cruise ship (MV Hondius) that disembarked from Argentina on April 1, headed toward the Canary Islands of Spain through the South Atlantic. The leading theory is that a Dutch couple contracted the virus while bird-watching in a landfill before boarding the ship in Argentina. The first victim, the man of this couple, died from the disease April 11. His wife, along with a German national, later passed away, as well. On April 24, dozens of passengers disembarked from the ship at the island of St. Helena and flew to South Africa. Patients with suspected infection have also since been evacuated to their home countries, including the Netherlands, Britain and the United States. One evacuee in Amsterdam has apparently tested positive. In the U.S., two Georgia residents, one Arizona resident, and one California resident are now being monitored for possible infection. Thankfully, spread between humans is rare. Like many plagues, rats (and rat poop) are to blame.

A person in a hazmat suit (2R) is escorted to a........

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