Health Officials Warn of Imported Rat Virus Cases

Sunday, May 10, 2026

Doctors have been warned to be on the lookout for "imported" hantavirus cases as American passengers return home from a cruise hit by an outbreak of the deadly disease. New Jersey joined five other states on Friday in announcing it was tracking residents who were onboard the MV Hondius, where eight cases of the illness were confirmed, with three deaths. Seven American passengers left the Dutch cruise ship last month, and 17 more are due to disembark in the Canary Islands on Sunday before being brought home.

Posted by reinheitsgebot at 05:43 PM | 6 COMMENTS | permalink | Comment on This Entry |

Alternate links: Google News | Twitter

Comments

Admin's note: Participants in this discussion must follow the site's moderation policy. Profanity will be filtered. Abusive conduct is not allowed.

Team Dotard cut funding to study hantavirus, the virus behind the deadly cruise ship outbreak

www.scientificamerican.com

Funding for the fat sack of child rape's ballroom is more important.

#1 | Posted by reinheitsgebot at 2026-05-10 06:49 PM | Reply | Newsworthy 2

#2 | Posted by C0RI0LANUS at 2026-05-10 09:32 PM | Reply

So, as I understand it, the hantavirus, which had been usually only transferred from rodent excrement to humans, now seems to have mutated into a human-to-human version?

Is that correct?

#3 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-05-10 10:24 PM | Reply

Generally, hantavirus is not spread from human to human; it is a zoonotic disease transmitted to people through contact with infected rodent waste.

The primary exception is the Andes virus strain in South America, which can rarely spread between people, usually requiring close, prolonged contact.

Key Details on Transmission:Main Transmission: Humans usually get hantavirus by inhaling airborne particles from rodent droppings, urine, or saliva.

The Exception (Andes Virus): Human-to-human transmission has been reported with the Andes virus, particularly among family members or in crowded, enclosed spaces.

Cruise Ship Cluster (2026): A recent cluster on a cruise ship has prompted investigation into potential person-to-person spread.

Not Highly Contagious: Even with the Andes virus, transmission between humans is not considered efficient or common, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Risk Level: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) considers the overall risk to the public and travelers to be very low, as detailed in their current situation summary.

So in other words, prepare for world shutdown, mandatory masks, mandatory shots that don't prevent spreading or curing, cancel culture, denial of services for the deniers... the usual.

#4 | Posted by Petrous at 2026-05-11 10:52 AM | Reply

This strain, Andes virus, was discovered in 1995 and is still largely a roden/rat virus, which is the reservoir species.

This particular strain, unfortunately, is one that is most adept at passing to humans and, with close contact, from human to human.

My understanding is that it isn't anywhere near as infectious as say SARS-CoV-2, but I'm not able to find an R0 value as I don't think there have been large enough outbreaks for that to be determined.

#5 | Posted by jpw at 2026-05-11 11:05 AM | Reply

So in other words, prepare for world shutdown, mandatory masks, mandatory shots that don't prevent spreading or curing, cancel culture, denial of services for the deniers... the usual.

#4 | Posted by Petrous

Or, you know, increased awareness among medical providers and ED staff, testing of suspected cases and PSAs ensuring people know the symptoms and how to respond to them.

The kind of rational, everyday stuff that goes on behind the scenes without you ever knowing.

#6 | Posted by jpw at 2026-05-11 11:07 AM | Reply