Updated
Updated · NBC Washington · May 12
Maryland, Virginia Monitor 3 for 42 Days After Hondius Hantavirus Exposure
Updated
Updated · NBC Washington · May 12

Maryland, Virginia Monitor 3 for 42 Days After Hondius Hantavirus Exposure

8 articles · Updated · NBC Washington · May 12
  • Three people in Maryland and Virginia are under 42-day hantavirus monitoring after exposure tied to the Hondius cruise ship outbreak, including one Virginia resident who was aboard and two Maryland residents exposed on a flight.
  • 18 Americans from the ship returned to the U.S. on Monday, with two placed in biocontainment units in Omaha and Atlanta while health departments track the rest and may allow home isolation after assessment.
  • Virginia officials said the former passenger is doing well and has no symptoms, though fewer than five additional Virginians may have been exposed; Maryland said the public risk remains very low.
  • CDC officials said the ship outbreak involves Andes virus, the only hantavirus known to spread person to person, but such transmission is rare and usually requires close, prolonged contact or bodily fluids.
Why are passengers in biocontainment if officials say the public risk from this deadly hantavirus is extremely low?
How did a rare virus with a 50% fatality rate spread between people for the first time on a cruise ship?
Could redesigned ship ventilation be the key to preventing future outbreaks of deadly airborne viruses at sea?