WHO chief says cruise ship-linked hantavirus outbreak 'over'

GENEVA -- The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday declared the hantavirus outbreak linked to the cruise ship MV Hondius officially over, following the completion of quarantine for the final contact and no new cases reported for more than five weeks.

"Today, the final contact of a person exposed to hantavirus on the cruise ship MV Hondius completed their quarantine period, tested negative and returned home. No further cases have been reported since May 25. We are therefore very pleased to say that WHO considers the outbreak of hantavirus over," said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus during his opening remarks at the media briefing on Thursday.

The WHO was notified of the outbreak on May 2 by Britain's International Health Regulations (IHR) National Focal Point. It involved a cluster of severe acute respiratory illness aboard the Dutch-flagged cruise ship.

A total of 13 cases were recorded, including three deaths. More than 650 contacts were identified and followed up by health authorities.

The outbreak response was supported by multiple countries in line with the International Health Regulations, including Argentina, Cabo Verde, Chile, the Netherlands, South Africa, Britain, and notably Spain, which demonstrated "incredible solidarity in supporting the safe disembarkation and repatriation of passengers and crew in Tenerife," the director-general said.

Although the outbreak is now over, WHO will continue working with governments and partners to advance understanding of this outbreak and of hantavirus more generally.

WHO is coordinating a study involving 21 countries to understand how the disease develops, which will support the development of diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines for future outbreaks.