A British crew member required urgent medical care and a UK passenger remained in critical but stable condition after a suspected hantavirus outbreak aboard the MV Hondius, a luxury expedition ship anchored off Cape Verde.
The vessel set sail in March from southern Argentina with 149 people from 23 countries on board. The crisis emerged late on Sunday when the World Health Organization said it was investigating a suspected outbreak. The WHO reported that, as of 4 May 2026, seven cases had been identified — two laboratory-confirmed and five suspected — including three deaths, one critically ill patient and three people with mild symptoms.
Three people linked to the voyage have died. Oceanwide Expeditions, the cruise operator, said the first passenger, a Dutch national, died on 11 April and was disembarked at St Helena on 24 April, accompanied by his wife. Days later a Dutch woman, aged 69, collapsed at a South African airport while trying to return to the Netherlands and later died in hospital. A German passenger died on 2 May. On 27 April a British national became seriously ill and was evacuated to Johannesburg, where a variant of hantavirus was identified and he remains in intensive care in critical but stable condition.
The operator said two crew members — one British and one Dutch — were showing acute respiratory symptoms, one mild and one severe, and required urgent medical attention. The exact cause and any link to the confirmed cases remain under investigation.
The Hondius, a 107-metre ship that runs prolonged “Atlantic Odyssey” voyages through remote islands and Antarctica, is anchored off Praia, Santiago island. Cape Verdean health authorities refused permission to dock, citing protection of national public health, and are coordinating with Dutch and UK authorities to manage the situation. Oceanwide said strict precautionary measures were in place on board, including isolation, hygiene protocols and medical monitoring, and that repatriation of affected individuals is being arranged in cooperation with Dutch authorities pending local approvals. The company has said the ship may instead proceed to Las Palmas or Tenerife for further handling and medical screening.
Passengers described uncertainty and anxiety onboard. US travel blogger Jake Rosmarin, visibly upset in a social media video, said the hardest part was not knowing what would happen next and the impact on families ashore.
Health agencies are conducting contact tracing and investigations. South Africa’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases was tracing contacts in and around Johannesburg to determine possible exposures after the British patient’s evacuation. The Netherlands’ RIVM is assisting and said the source of infection remains unclear, citing possibilities such as rodents on board or exposure during a South American stop. The WHO said the risk to the wider public was low and that panic or travel restrictions were unnecessary.
Hantaviruses are typically carried by rodents and transmitted to people through contact with urine, droppings or saliva, or by inhaling contaminated dust; they can cause severe respiratory illness and have led to deaths in past outbreaks. While human-to-human transmission is rare, it has been reported in some variants. The family of viruses attracted attention last year after the actor Gene Hackman’s wife, Betsy Arakawa, died from a hantavirus infection in New Mexico. In 2019, an outbreak in southern Argentina killed at least nine people.
The UK Foreign Office said it was monitoring the situation and in contact with the cruise company and local authorities. Oceanwide said repatriation plans for the deceased and the two ill crew members depend on coordination and authorisation from Cape Verdean health authorities and other relevant agencies.
