A luxury Antarctic voyage turned into a global health scare after a deadly virus outbreak aboard the MV Hondius left multiple passengers dead and investigators scrambling across continents.
According to an Associated Press report, the outbreak has been traced back not to the ship itself, but to a pre-boarding excursion in Ushuaia, where a Dutch couple is believed to have been exposed to contaminated rodent droppings during a bird-watching tour near a landfill in March 2026.
The illness was identified as the Andes hantavirus, a particularly dangerous variant known for its ability, in rare cases, to spread from person to person. Health officials confirmed that at least three passengers died, with several others infected during the expedition.
Crisis unfolds at sea
As symptoms began to surface onboard, the situation escalated quickly. The ship was forced to divert course off the coast of Cape Verde, triggering emergency response protocols. Infected passengers were evacuated and transported to medical facilities in South Africa and the Netherlands for treatment.
Despite initial fears, investigators confirmed that no rodents were found aboard the ship, effectively ruling out onboard transmission from animals and reinforcing the theory that exposure occurred on land before embarkation.
A rare but serious threat
The Andes strain of hantavirus is uncommon but highly concerning due to its potential for limited human-to-human transmission. It carries a 1 to 6 week incubation period, meaning symptoms can appear long after initial exposure, complicating containment efforts.
Health agencies are now conducting international contact tracing, tracking passengers and potential secondary exposures across multiple countries. Officials stress that while the situation is serious, the overall global risk remains low, and outbreaks of this scale are extremely rare.
What happens next
Medical teams are monitoring all known contacts while advising recent travelers to report symptoms such as fever, muscle aches, and respiratory distress.
For now, the case stands as a stark reminder of how quickly localized exposure can escalate into a multi-country health emergency, especially when travel is involved.