Two Irish passengers aboard the MV Hondius have been flown back home (Image: Getty)
As the 20 British passengers who were stranded aboard a cruise ship where three people died from a deadly virus return home, a doctor has shed light on what investigations into the outbreak have uncovered. So far, 11 cases of hantavirus have been reported among those who were on board the MV Hondius, including three deaths. Nine of these have been confirmed, while the remaining two are suspected.
Following the outbreak, the vessel sailed to Tenerife, where passengers were evacuated for medical treatment. The 20 Britons aboard the ship, along with a German who is a UK resident and a Japanese passenger, were flown to Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral on Sunday, where they will be housed for three days before being sent home.
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They will subsequently be required to isolate for 42 days. Should they be unable to return home, alternative accommodation will be arranged.
An A&E doctor has now explained what the latest data from the outbreak has revealed. Dr Ahmed, who boasts more than 555,000 followers on TikTok, described the virology results as “quite interesting”.
“Not only do they suggest that the virus did indeed come from a zoonotic source, meaning that it came from rat urine [or] droppings for the first two patients who were infected, but they also showed that everybody from the cruise ship who has since come back positive, every single genetic sequencing from the virus is exactly identical between them,” he said. “What this means is that those people who have got infected on the ship itself later on, or have come up positive later on in other places, they all were infected from the same source, likely the same person, confirming in a smoking gun way that this was transmitted human to human.
“While this information is important to know, the biggest questions are still unanswered, whether the virus has mutated enough to be more aerostable to transfer better and quicker between human to human, or is it just the cruise ship’s unique kind of recycled air environment that allows this transfer to happen so quickly and so widely?”
A French woman who tested positive for hantavirus is currently receiving treatment in intensive care and is listed in a stable condition at a hospital in Paris. Of the 18 evacuated passengers airlifted to the United States, one has since tested positive but is displaying no symptoms, while another experienced only mild symptoms.
One British man with hantavirus remains under care in Johannesburg, South Africa, and is understood to be showing signs of improvement, while another is receiving treatment in the Netherlands. A further British national confirmed to have contracted the virus is self-isolating at his residence on the remote South Atlantic Island of Tristan da Cunha, reports the Mirror.
Dr Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director general of the World Health Organisation (WHO), provided an update on the situation during a press briefing earlier today. He said: “Almost 150 people from 23 countries were on this ship for weeks, in what must have been a very frightening situation. Some of the passengers were facing mental breakdown.”
He added: “At the moment, there is no sign that we are seeing the start of a larger outbreak. But of course, the situation could change. And given the long incubation period of the virus, it’s possible we might see more cases in the coming weeks.”
As of Monday evening, the vessel’s operator Oceanwide Expeditions confirmed 27 people remain aboard, comprising 25 crew members and two medical personnel. In a video statement on Monday, captain Jan Dobrogowski thanked passengers and crew, saying “the past few weeks have been extremely challenging to us all”.
He added: “What touched me the most, what moved me the most, was your patience, your discipline, and also [the] kindness that you showed to each other throughout. I’ve witnessed your caring, your unity and quiet strength amongst everybody on board, guests and crew alike, and I must commend my crew for their courage and the selfless resolve they showed time and again in the most difficult moments.
“I cannot imagine sailing through these circumstances with a better group of people, guests and crew alike. Most importantly, our thoughts are with the ones that are no longer with us. Whatever I say will not ease this loss. I’d like you to know they are with us every day, in our hearts and our thoughts.”
Stringent infection control protocols were maintained throughout the journey to Arrowe Park, with passengers, crew, drivers and medical personnel all donning personal protective equipment, including face masks. The facility comprises six storeys of self-contained flats, each equipped with their own bedrooms, en-suite bathrooms, kitchen and lounge areas.
Janelle Holmes, chief executive of Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, confirmed on Sunday that the hospital would conduct “welfare checks on each individual”. She stated that should any passengers develop symptoms, they would be transferred to Royal Liverpool University Hospital, which is home to the regional Tropical and Infectious Diseases Unit.
