Hantavirus risk explained by Oxford University expert

A British crew member, diagnosed with the hantavirus, is being prepared for medical evacuation from the Dutch-flagged cruise ship MV Hondius.

Meanwhile, a British passenger was medically evacuated from the ship on April 27 and remains in isolation in hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa.

A total of seven suspected cases have been identified, with three deaths so far, on the ship anchored off Cape Verde.

Sir Andrew, director of the Oxford vaccine group, said: “The Andes virus, which has been identified as the variant behind the outbreak, is known very rarely to spread between people with close contact.

“It means it is very easy to isolate people who are unwell and to follow quarantine and so on to avoid spread to other people.”

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Sir Andrew Pollard (Image: Uni of Oxford)

Professor Sir Andrew Pollard, director of the Oxford Vaccine Group at the University of Oxford, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “The Andes strain of this virus is common amongst rodents in countries like Argentina in South America.

“With this particular hantavirus, the Andes virus, it is known very rarely to spread between people with close contact, usually symptomatic individuals who are in close contact with each other.

“And that’s important because it means it is very easy to isolate people who are unwell and to follow sort of quarantine and so on to avoid spread to other people.

“It’s not like the situation we had with Covid-19 in the pandemic where people could spread even without symptoms, and therefore it was able to spread very easily in the population.”

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The ship, which was sailing from Argentina to Cape Verde, has already had three deaths linked to hantavirus, with two Dutch passengers and one German passengers suspected to have passed from the disease.

Once the crew member, a Dutch colleague and another passenger had been evacuated the ship will start the three-day journey to the Canary Islands, docking in either Gran Canaria or Tenerife.

Dr Jacqueline Weyer, acting deputy executive director for National Institute for Communicable Diseases in South Africa, said that Andes virus is a “slow burner” and “moves really slowly” which “allows a window of opportunity to contain the outbreak”.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has said plans are being made for the “safe onward travel” of Britons on the ship.

Hantavirus infections, which are usually spread by infected rodents’ urine or faeces, can lead to severe respiratory illness and can sometimes be fatal.

While it is rare, hantavirus infections can spread between people, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).