Ship’s British doctor ‘among ill patients on MV Hondius’ after hantavirus outbreak

A British crew member who is ill on MV Hondius after a suspected rat-related virus outbreak is said to be the ship’s doctor.

Around 150 guests and crew, including 23 British nationals, are trapped on the cruise ship, which has been caught in the middle of a disease outbreak while sailing from Argentina to Cape Verde.

The vessel run by Dutch Oceanwide Expeditions has been stuck in the Atlantic near Cape Verde in isolation while waiting for permission to approach after the deadly outbreak, which killed three people.

Now a passenger on board the cruise has claimed one of the ill crew members is the ship’s doctor.

Ann Lane, from Dublin, told the Irish Times that the ‘ship’s doctor and a member of the expedition staff are sick on board.’

She said the doctor, described as a younger British man, had been ‘fabulous’ and ‘treating everybody day and night.’

He had reportedly been sick for ‘quite a few days, maybe since last Thursday,’ Ann said.

Oceanwide Expeditions said in its latest update that its plan is to continue to either Gran Canaria or Tenerife in the Canary Islands after the evacuation of three individuals to the Netherlands.

However, Spain has signalled that it might be hesitant to let the cruise dockin its territory.

Spain’s health ministry said it will decide where the ship can stop at based on the analysis of epidemiological data collected on board during its stop in Cape Verde.

‘Until then, the Ministry of Health will not make any decision, as we have already informed the WHO [World Health Organisation],’ the ministry said.

WHO is said to be tracing people who were on an Airlink flight with a Dutch woman who had disembarked the ship at St Helena after her husband died on board the ship.

She had flown between Saint Helena and Johannesburg, South Africa, on April 25 and died in hospital, where she later tested positive for hantavirus.

Airlink, the South African carrier, has been told to notify the 82 passengers on board that they must contact the health department, news agency AFP reports.

Oceanwide Expeditions said in a statement on Tuesday evening: ‘The medical evacuation of two individuals currently requiring urgent medical care, and the individual associated with the guest who passed away on 2 May, will occur using two specialized aircraft that are en route to Cape Verde.

‘From here, the patients are to be medically evacuated to the Netherlands. At this stage, we do not have an exact timeline.

‘Once these three individuals have been safely transferred from the vessel and are in transit to the Netherlands, the m/v Hondius will begin repositioning.

‘Our plan is to proceed to the Canary Islands, either Gran Canaria or Tenerife, which will take 3 days of sailing. Discussions are ongoing with relevant authorities. This will be shared when concrete plans are available.’

What is hantavirus?

Hantaviruses are a family of rodent-bourne viruses, with each strain tied to a specific host species.

It’s spread when people come into contact with infected droppings, saliva, urine or nesting materials, but is extremely rare, and rarely passed from person to person.

If caught, hantavirus can lead to two main illnesses, one of which affects the lungs (Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome or HPS) and the other which affects the kidneys (Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome or HFRS).

The incubation period for this illness is generally two to four weeks, according to the government, but can range from as little as two days to as long as eight weeks.

What are the symptoms?

Early symptoms of hantavirus are similar to the flu, and include headaches, dizziness, chills as well as abdominal problems like diarrhoea, vomiting and nausea.

If it progresses into Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome, patients can experience headaches, dizziness, chills and abdominal problems like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea.

If you develop Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome, initial symptoms will include intense headaches, back and abdominal pain, fever or chills, nausea, and blurred vision.

If the disease progresses, later symptoms include low blood pressure, acute shock (lack of blood flow), internal bleeding, and acute kidney failure, according to the CDC.

Hantavirus can be fatal, so it’s important to keep an eye on symptoms if you believe you’ve been exposed. There is currently no cure for the disease.

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