An American travel blogger has shared an emotional social media update while trapped aboard the cruise ship at the centre of a suspected hantavirus outbreak. Three people have died amid the outbreak on the MV Hondius, which departed Ushuaia in southern Argentina on March 20 and was scheduled to arrive in Cape Verde, off the coast of West Africa, on May 4.
Passenger's Plea for Safety
Travel blogger Jake Rosmarin, who has over 44,000 followers on Instagram, was aboard the ship when the suspected outbreak occurred. Hantavirus is a rare infection passed from rodents to humans, typically through their urine, droppings or saliva. The infection can be fatal as it has no cure.
“I am currently on board the MV Hondius, and what’s happening right now is very real for all of us here,” Rosmarin said in a video shared Monday on Instagram. “We’re not just a story, we’re not just headlines. We’re people. People with families, with lives, with people waiting for us at home.”
“There’s a lot of uncertainty, and that’s the hardest part,” Rosmarin added. “All we want right now is to feel safe. To have clarity, and to get home.” He concluded the video by saying, “If you’re seeing coverage of this, just remember that there are real people behind it and that this isn’t something happening somewhere far away…It’s happening to us right now.”
Rosmarin noted in the video’s caption that while the topic was difficult to discuss, he is currently doing well.
Details of the Outbreak
There are a total of 149 people aboard the MV Hondius, including 19 British passengers and four British crew members. The shipowner confirmed that a Dutch couple and a German national have died. A 69-year-old British passenger is also fighting for his life in intensive care in Johannesburg.
The Dutch man who died was 70. Officials said he suddenly developed fever, headache, abdominal pain and diarrhoea. He died on arrival at the island of St. Helena, a British territory in the South Atlantic. His wife, 69, was evacuated to South Africa and later died in a Johannesburg hospital.
Oceanwide Expeditions said that hantavirus had only been confirmed in the case of the British man who is receiving treatment for the rodent-borne illness.
Global Health Response
The World Health Organization said Sunday that investigations into the outbreak are ongoing and will require further laboratory testing and epidemiological investigations. The virus is also being sequenced.
Hantavirus is mainly spread through contact with rodents or their urine, saliva or droppings. The WHO says that while it rarely happens, hantaviruses can be spread between people. The illness begins with flu-like symptoms but can rapidly progress and become life-threatening. Symptoms include fever, chills, muscle aches and headaches.
Symptoms of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome show between one and eight weeks after contact with an infected rodent. Patients might experience tightness in their chest as the infection progresses. The other syndrome caused by hantavirus, haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome, usually develops within a week or two after exposure.
Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome is fatal in about 35 percent of people infected, while the death rate for haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome varies from one to 15 percent of patients, according to the CDC. There is no specific treatment or cure for the illness, but early intervention can increase the chances of survival.
