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France Reports First Hantavirus Case Tied to MV Hondius Cruise Ship
(MENAFN) France has confirmed its first case of hantavirus linked to an outbreak aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship, according to the country’s health authorities.
Health Minister Stéphanie Rist said the patient is a woman who was among five French nationals evacuated from the vessel and flown from Spain’s Canary Islands back to France on Sunday. She made the statement during an interview with Radio France Inter.
Officials reported that the patient began showing symptoms during the evacuation flight from Tenerife to Le Bourget airport near Paris. “Tests have come back positive for hantavirus,” Rist said, adding that the woman’s condition had “unfortunately deteriorated overnight.”
French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu also commented on the situation via social media platform X, noting that the patient had already exhibited symptoms during the repatriation flight, which arrived shortly before 4:30 pm local time on Sunday.
The remaining four French passengers who were repatriated from the ship tested negative for the virus. However, health authorities confirmed they will remain in isolation for at least 15 days, with the possibility of extension depending on medical guidance.
Officials have also traced additional French nationals potentially linked to the outbreak cluster, identifying 22 individuals who had traveled on earlier related flights, including routes between Saint Helena and Johannesburg as well as Johannesburg and Amsterdam.
Authorities stated that eight French citizens from the Saint Helena–Johannesburg flight had already been placed in isolation approximately one week earlier, while others have been instructed to self-isolate and report to health services for monitoring.
Hantavirus is generally transmitted through exposure to infected rodents or their waste, although the specific strain involved in this outbreak is capable of limited human-to-human transmission, according to health officials.
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