Hantavirus cruise outbreak cases rise, with three dead, as Irish nationals trapped on board

Two Irish people are trapped on board the luxury cruise ship where a suspected outbreak of Hantavirus has already taken three lives, with the number of suspected cases now rising to seven

The number of suspected Hantavirus cases in an outbreak onboard a luxury cruise ship has risen to seven.

Around 150 people on the MV Hondius cruise ship have been ordered to stay on board, while authorities rush to contain the suspected rare, rodent-borne illness that could have spread.

The World Health Organisation revealed the number of cases has risen to seven, on Monday, with two being laboratory confirmed hantavirus cases and the five others are suspected, reports the Mirror.

Hantavirus is a rare disease that carried by rodents but is occasionally spread to humans, often through contact with urine, faeces, or saliva of infected rodents. Three passengers on the luxury Dutch liner have already died died.

The other cases include a critically ill passenger and three people reporting mild symptoms. The WHO said the illness onset happened between April 6 and 28, 2026.

The symptoms faced by sick passengers have also been revealed by WHO, which include fever, gastrointestinal symptoms, rapid progression to pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome and shock.

The organisation said an investigation was being carried out along with “further laboratory testing, and epidemiological investigations” adding: “Medical care and support are being provided to passengers and crew.”

Two Irish passengers are onboard the ship which is docked off the coast of Cape Verde.

Ann Lane, who is originally from Cork but lives in Donnybrook, south Dublin, told the Irish Times: “The real shock was when the first people died because we just didn’t know what this was.”

The wife of the first victim to die, left the ship at St Helena but also later died after falling ill.

Ms Lane told the publication: “We heard she had been taken on to the flight to Johannesburg in a wheelchair, though of course there’s an awful lot of rumours.

“She seemed to be okay while she was on the ship before she got off at St Helena. So that was an awful shock, to hear both of them had died.

“Then another person died, a woman and her body is still on the ship. It’s terribly sad, really awfully sad. But we have confidence in Oceanwide, everyone on the ship, their performance has been impeccable.”

WHO also revealed exactly what had happened each person affected, detailing how a Dutch male, 70, suffered with a fever, headache, and mild diarrhoea, on April 6, but five days later developed respiratory distress and died.

His wife, 69, reported gastrointestinal symptoms while leaving the cruise for the remote island of St Helena, with her dead husband. Her condition deteriorated during a flight to Johannesburg and she died at an emergency department on April 26 – it was confirmed on May 4 she had contracted the virus.

They revealed that the couple had been travelling through South America, including Argentina, before they boarded the vessel.

A 69-year-old British man went to the on board doctor and complained about shortness of breath and signs of pneumonia, on April 24.

He was medically evacuated to South Africa and is in a critical condition. A fourth person, a female adult, faced symptoms of pneumonia and died on May 2.

Three other suspected cases reported having high fevers and some also had gastrointestinal symptoms – these people remain on the cruise. One of these people is a British crew member, according to the cruise operator.

In a statement, the operator Oceanwide said: “During this voyage, three passengers have passed away. In addition, one passenger is currently being treated in intensive care in Johannesburg, and two crew members on board require urgent medical care.

“As of 23:00hrs CET on 3 May 2026, no authorization from Cape Verdean authorities has been given to disembark guests requiring medical care or to support with medical screening.”Hantavirus cruise ship outbreak cases rise as symptoms of MV Hondius passengers revealed

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