The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, announced the successful completion of the evacuation operation of passengers from the MV Hondus cruise ship, where an outbreak of hantavirus was recorded.
The statement by the WHO Director General is reported by the correspondent of Suspilny.
He said more than 120 passengers have already been flown to their countries or are in quarantine on their way home. Meanwhile, Captain Jan Dobrogowski and his 26-person crew remain on board the ship, which is due to dock in the Netherlands on Monday. As of today, there are no people on board with symptoms of the disease.
“As of today, WHO has received reports of 10 cases, including three fatalities, including eight individuals with laboratory-confirmed diagnosis of Andes virus infection and two probable cases. No new fatalities have been reported since May 2,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
He noted that due to the long incubation period (up to six weeks), new cases may be registered in the coming days among passengers returning home. This does not mean that the outbreak is spreading, but rather indicates the effectiveness of control measures, testing and assistance provided by national governments.
The WHO states that the risk of the spread of hantavirus from infection on the MV Hondus is low for the global community.