Canada confirms first hantavirus case
Ottawa, May 18
The Public Health Agency of Canada has confirmed a case of hantavirus in a cruise passenger currently isolating in British Columbia following laboratory testing.
PHAC said in a statement on Sunday that samples from British Columbia were sent to the agency's National Microbiology Laboratory (NML) in Winnipeg for confirmatory testing.
According to the agency, one individual's sample was confirmed positive for hantavirus on Saturday. A second individual, a travelling partner of the confirmed case, was confirmed negative, Xinhua news agency reported.
No additional cases have been identified so far. PHAC said all high-risk contacts are isolating and will continue to be closely monitored by local public health authorities, adding that the overall risk to the general population in Canada remains low at this time.
The outbreak occurred aboard the polar expedition cruise ship MV Hondius and has resulted in three deaths so far. The incubation period for hantavirus generally ranges from one to eight weeks.
Earlier, health authorities in Canada's British Columbia province announced that a Canadian cruise passenger currently in isolation has tested presumptive positive for hantavirus
Bonnie Henry, a provincial health officer, said the patient began developing mild symptoms, including fever and headache, two days ago and was taken to a local hospital. The presumptive positive result came back on Friday and the person is currently being treated in isolation as a positive patient.
Meanwhile, the Dutch government announced earlier that the hantavirus-hit cruise ship MV Hondius is expected to arrive at the Port of Rotterdam next Monday, with most crew members set to undergo a six-week quarantine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
"Rotterdam has been designated in the Netherlands as the port for the handling of infectious diseases in shipping," according to a letter sent to parliament on Friday (local time) and signed by Sophie Hermans, Dutch minister of health, welfare and sport, and Tom Berendsen, the country's foreign minister.
According to Oceanwide Expeditions, the Dutch operator of the vessel, there are currently 27 people on board, including 25 crew members and two medical personnel. The group consists of 17 Filipinos, four Dutch nationals, four Ukrainians, one Russian, and one Polish national.
— IANS
Reader Comments
As an Indian, I'm really concerned about cruise tourism safety. Remember how COVID spread on ships? Now this. Governments need stricter health protocols for cruise passengers. Three deaths already! 😟
Interesting that the crew are mostly from developing nations like Philippines. This shows how globalized travel is. Hope the quarantine in Rotterdam works smoothly. Hantavirus incubation is 1-8 weeks - that's a long monitoring period.
Hantavirus is spread through rodent droppings - so how did it get on a polar expedition ship? 🤔 Cruise operators must be more careful about sanitation. India should learn from this - our tourism industry also needs better disease surveillance.
I appreciate Canada's transparency in sharing details. But why is the cruise ship still sailing with cases? The Netherlands handling quarantine is smart though. Let's hope the other 26 people on board stay negative. 🙏
Three deaths from hantavirus on one ship is alarming! 😰 India should take note - our public health system needs to be ready for rare diseases too. The 1-8 week incubation period means we need long quarantine protocols. Glad the risk to general public is low in Canada though.
This is a reminder that infectious diseases don't
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