U.S. national tests positive for hantavirus, another develops mild symptoms after leaving cruise ship

While at least six Americans are currently being monitored for cruise-related illnesses, this marks the first confirmed case Hantavirus These include those evacuated from the luxury cruise ship MV Hondius this weekend.

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The second passenger who developed symptoms has not yet been confirmed to have the virus. The plane was scheduled to arrive in Omaha, nebraskaearly Monday.

“One passenger is currently experiencing mild symptoms and another passenger has a mildly positive Andes virus PCR test,” they said.

These Americans will first be taken to the University of Nebraska, which has a federally funded quarantine facility, to evaluate whether they have been in close contact with anyone with symptoms and to determine their level of risk for spreading the virus.

Each of the 17 Americans will receive clinical evaluation and care specific to their condition, HHS said.

“One passenger will be sent to the Nebraska Biocontainment Center upon arrival, and the other passengers will go to the State Quarantine Center for evaluation and monitoring,” said Kayla Thomas, spokesperson for the Nebraska Medical Center. “The passenger who went to the biocontainment center tested positive for the virus but was asymptomatic.”

“We are confident in the quality of care these individuals will receive and the protocols in place to ensure the safety of health care workers,” said Omaha Mayor John W. Ewing Jr.

In a video posted Monday morning, Hondez captain Jan Dobrogowski expressed his gratitude to passengers and crew while acknowledging the challenging weeks they had endured on board.

Human infections with hantaviruses are uncommon and have never been documented on cruise ships before.

The World Health Organization is currently conducting an investigation to determine the origin of the outbreak, focusing specifically on a bird-watching trip in southern Argentina that the first passenger to die from the disease took before boarding the cruise ship.

Throughout this outbreak, U.S. and international health officials have emphasized that the risk to the public remains low and that transmission is limited to close contact.

Other countries are taking steps to evacuate, monitor and quarantine the Hondius’ former passengers. As of Monday morning, 54 people were still on board, 32 of whom were scheduled to fly to the Netherlands.