Three more Belgians identified after hantavirus outbreak on cruise ship
Three more Belgians have been identified as contacts of passengers infected with hantavirus on board the cruise ship MV Hondius, Belgian health authorities said on Saturday.
The FPS Public Health said the individuals were found following “extensive contact tracing”. None of them are showing symptoms, but they must remain in home quarantine for the full six-week incubation period. They will be monitored by the Walloon health authority AVIQ.
On Friday, a first Belgian contact case had already been identified and placed under the supervision of Brussels health authority Vivalis.
This brings the total number of Belgians identified as contacts of infected passengers to four. None have developed symptoms so far.
Meanwhile, two Belgians remain on board the ship, which is expected to dock in Tenerife early on Sunday morning. They will be flown back on a Dutch charter flight and will undergo a medical assessment on arrival in Belgium.
If no symptoms are detected, they will be allowed to return home but must continue to isolate and limit contact with others for several weeks. Monitoring of the two passengers will be handled by the Flemish Department of Care.
The outbreak on board the Hondius has already resulted in three deaths. Several infected passengers were evacuated from the vessel earlier this week.
A container used to diagnose the Andes hantavirus © Handout / ARGENTINE HEALTH MINISTRY / AFP