Canada Bars MV Hondius Passengers From Flights as 9 Monitor Andes Hantavirus Exposure
Updated
Updated · The Daily Scrum News · May 13
Canada Bars MV Hondius Passengers From Flights as 9 Monitor Andes Hantavirus Exposure
6 articles · Updated · The Daily Scrum News · May 13
Canada has barred anyone who was aboard the MV Hondius since April 1 from boarding flights to the country until cleared under international public health guidance.
Nine people in Canada are being monitored for possible Andes hantavirus exposure tied to the Antarctic cruise ship, including four travelers who returned to British Columbia on May 10 and remain symptom-free in supervised isolation.
The other five include two former Hondius passengers who left before the outbreak was detected and three people linked to possible exposure on a commercial flight with a confirmed case.
Officials cut an earlier contact count after a Quebec airline passenger was no longer deemed high risk, and they still describe the threat to the public as low with no domestic transmission identified.
Andes hantavirus is drawing extra caution because limited person-to-person spread has been documented, unlike most hantaviruses, with monitoring set for at least 21 days and up to 42 days.
How did one cruise ship manage to spread a deadly South American virus across 13 countries?
Are 42-day quarantines enough to stop a virus we can't treat or vaccinate against?
Why isn't a virus with a 38% fatality rate considered the next major pandemic threat?