3 Dead in Suspected Outbreak of Rare Virus on Cruise Ship

A lengthy cruise including stops as remote as Antarctica has turned into the scene of a deadly disease probe, NBC News reports. Three people are dead and three others are ill of suspected hantavirus infections linked to the Hondius, a Netherlands-operated expedition ship now anchored off the African country of Cape Verde, according to the World Health Organization.

One passenger's infection has been confirmed, with five more cases suspected. Two of the dead are a Dutch couple in their late 60s and 70s who fell ill during the voyage that began in Ushuaia, Argentina, and wound through Antarctica and several South Atlantic islands. Details on the third death have not been released. A British passenger—who tested positive for hantavirus and is the only confirmed case so far, the BBC reports—is being treated in South Africa, where authorities say one patient is in intensive care. Two symptomatic crew members remain on board; Cape Verde officials have so far refused to let them disembark, and a medical evacuation is being arranged.

Hantaviruses, typically spread by contact with infected rodents or their droppings, urine, or saliva, rarely pass between people but can cause severe lung or kidney disease. WHO says multiple investigations and virus sequencing are underway, while medical care continues for those still on the ship. There is no specific treatment or cure, but getting medical care early increases survival odds. While hantavirus is rare, it recently gained attention when it killed Gene Hackman's wife, Betsy Arakawa, and Hackman died about a week later, the AP reports.