Hantavirus on a cruise ship FOPH expert: "We are not dealing with a pandemic"
The outbreak of hantavirus on the cruise ship "Hondius" is reminiscent of the coronavirus pandemic. There are deaths and infected people, and the chain of infection extends all the way to Europe. Nevertheless, the Federal Office of Public Health currently considers a pandemic to be ruled out.
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- The hantavirus outbreak on the cruise ship "Hondius" is reminiscent of the coronavirus pandemic.
- However, according to a media report, an expert from the Federal Office of Public Health currently considers a global epidemic to be ruled out.
- Additional preparations or the application of the pandemic plan are not currently planned.
- In Switzerland, there is currently one person who has tested positive and been hospitalized, as well as two contact persons under observation.
According to the CH Media newspapers, the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) currently considers a global epidemic caused by the hantavirus that broke out on a cruise ship to be ruled out. "We are not dealing with a pandemic," said FOPH representative Claudio Zaugg according to the report. According to Zaugg, the reference laboratory in Geneva quickly identified the Andes virus type. In Switzerland, there is currently one person who has tested positive and been hospitalized, as well as two contact persons under observation.
No additional preparations or application of the pandemic plan are currently planned. The Swiss crew member of the cruise ship is in quarantine in the Netherlands.
On Sunday, the first special flights took off from the Canary Island of Tenerife - where the cruise ship "Hondius" had docked after several weeks at sea - to bring people from the ship, from a total of 23 nations, home under special safety precautions.
Three passengers died
So far, a total of three passengers from the "Hondius" have died, all of whom are suspected or confirmed to be infected with the Andes virus. This South American variant of the hantavirus can also be transmitted from person to person in close contact, such as on a cruise ship.
However, there have only been a few recorded outbreaks in South America in recent decades, all of which have quickly subsided. Even in the current case, experts do not see any risk of the pathogen spreading on a large scale.
