In British Columbia, a Canadian individual in quarantine after exposure to the hantavirus on the MV Hondius cruise ship has tested positive, officials announced on Saturday. Dr. Bonnie Henry, the province’s health officer, shared that the individual began showing mild symptoms, such as fever and headache, two days prior. Both the affected individual and their partner, who was also aboard the ship, have been hospitalized in Victoria for further evaluation and testing.
The test results, received late Friday, suggest a “presumptive positive,” according to Dr. Henry, with samples sent to the national microbiology lab in Winnipeg for confirmation. These confirmatory results are anticipated over the weekend. Dr. Henry assured that the patient is stable, with symptoms remaining mild, and continues to be monitored in isolation at the hospital. Meanwhile, the patient’s partner has tested negative but is also under hospital care for observation.
As a precautionary measure, another individual who shared accommodations with the affected person has been hospitalized for monitoring. The fourth Canadian, also exposed on the cruise, is isolating at home under daily supervision. Upon arrival in Victoria on May 10, none of the four Canadians exhibited symptoms, and they were placed in quarantine for at least 21 days.
In related news, France’s Pasteur Institute has fully sequenced the Andes virus found in a French passenger from the same cruise and confirmed it matches known strains from South America. The genomic analysis revealed no new characteristics that would increase transmissibility or danger. The virus from the French passenger is identical to other cases on the ship and shows about 97% similarity to Andes viruses in South America, including those found in rodents.
Jean-Claude Manuguerra, leading Pasteur’s environment and infectious risk unit, indicated that the minor variations observed are typical of natural viral evolution and do not alter the virus’s characteristics. Since April 11, the hantavirus outbreak on the cruise ship has resulted in the deaths of three individuals: a Dutch couple and a German woman.