3 cruise ship passengers are dead, and hantavirus is the suspected culprit: What to know

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This is a developing story and will be updated as new information is released.

One confirmed and five suspected cases of hantavirus infection have struck passengers of a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean.

Of the six affected individuals, three have died and one is currently receiving intensive medical care, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a May 3 statement on X.

Hantaviruses are a family of viruses typically carried and spread by rodents. People can catch the germs if they are exposed to the urine, droppings or saliva of infected animals, or rarely, if an infected animal bites them. One type of hantavirus, called the Andes virus, is capable of spreading from an infected person to other people, but such cases of human-to-human transmission have been rare. The specific type of hantavirus involved in the cruise ship cases has not been disclosed.

Hantaviruses can cause two types of serious infection: hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS). The former infection can take up to eight weeks to develop after exposure to the virus; it starts with fever, chills and fatigue and progresses to potentially deadly organ dysfunction and respiratory issues. The latter infection takes about two to four weeks to set in and causes fever, headache, gastrointestinal issues, kidney dysfunction and, sometimes, internal bleeding.

HPS is deadlier than HFRS, with a fatality rate of 38% in patients who develop respiratory symptoms of the disease. The fatality rate of HFRS varies depending on the specific hantavirus a person is infected with, with fatality rates ranging from 1% to 15%. Treatments for hantavirus disease aim to manage a patient's symptoms; there is no cure for the infections.

So far, only one of the illnesses connected to the cruise has been confirmed to be a hantavirus infection, according to the cruise's operator, Oceanwide Expeditions. The company, which offers expedition-style voyages to the polar regions and sub-Antarctic, detailed the situation in statements released May 3 and May 4.

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The affected vessel is the MV Hondius, which departed from Ushuaia in Argentina about three weeks ago, The New York Times reported. It stopped in mainland Antarctica, the Falkland Islands, South Georgia, Nightingale Island, Tristan, St. Helena, Ascension and Cape Verde, and it currently remains off the coast of Cape Verde.

On April 11, a passenger died on board, and his cause of death could not immediately be determined. On April 24, that deceased passenger and his surviving wife, both Dutch nationals, were dropped off on St. Helena to await repatriation to the Netherlands. Three days later, Oceanwide Expeditions learned that the wife had also fallen ill and later died on her way back to the Netherlands. Neither of these illnesses have been confirmed to be hantavirus infections at this time, the company clarified.

Meanwhile, on April 27, another passenger aboard the MV Hondius got sick and was evacuated to South Africa for treatment. The passenger, a British national, remains in intensive care in Johannesburg and is in "critical but stable condition." Laboratory tests have confirmed that a hantavirus infected this patient, Oceanwide Expeditions said.

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Another passenger died aboard the vessel on May 2, and his cause of death has not been determined. There are now two crewmembers with respiratory symptoms ‪—‬ one with mild symptoms and one with severe symptoms. These three new cases of illness have not yet been confirmed to be hantavirus disease.

There are 149 people on board the vessel, and local health authorities have visited the MV Hondius to assess the situation. Oceanwide Expeditions is collaborating with local and international authorities, including the WHO, to coordinate possible evacuations for medical care and assess the threat to the uninfected passengers.

"Detailed investigations are ongoing, including further laboratory testing, and epidemiological investigations," the WHO statement said. "Medical care and support are being provided to passengers and crew. Sequencing of the virus is also ongoing."

This article is for informational purposes only and is not meant to offer medical advice.

Nicoletta Lanese is the health channel editor at Live Science and was previously a news editor and staff writer at the site. She is a recipient of the 2026 AHCJ International Health Study Fellowship, with a project focused on antibiotic stewardship practices in Japan and the U.S. They hold a graduate certificate in science communication from UC Santa Cruz and degrees in neuroscience and dance from the University of Florida. Beyond Live Science, Lanese's work has appeared in The Scientist, Science News, the Mercury News, Mongabay and Stanford Medicine Magazine, among other outlets. Based in NYC, she also remains involved in dance and performs in local choreographers' work.

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