Two British nationals are self-isolating at home in the United Kingdom after potential exposure to hantavirus on board the expedition cruise ship MV Hondius, according to the UK Health Security Agency. Separately, Argentina's health ministry said a Dutch couple linked to the outbreak had travelled through Chile, Uruguay and Argentina before joining the voyage.

At least 23 passengers who disembarked from the vessel have already returned to their home countries without initially being aware they may have been exposed to the virus, according to reports.

The passengers left the ship during a stop at Saint Helena on 23 April. Their destinations included the United States, Australia, Taiwan and several European countries, a passenger still on board told the Spanish newspaperEl País.

"There are 23 people wandering around there, and until three days ago, no one had contacted them," the passenger said. "The Australian went back to Australia, the one from Taiwan to Taiwan, the Americans to all corners of North America. The Englishman to England, the Dutch to their homes… I don't remember the rest."

Health authorities later confirmed that one of those passengers,a Swiss manwho had returned home with his wife, tested positive for hantavirus on Wednesday. He had initially tested negative after being admitted to a hospital in Zurich, but hantavirus can remain dormant for up to eight weeks.

The outbreak has been linked to a rare strain of the virus, believed by the World Health Organization (WHO) to be capable of human-to-human transmission. The strain, known as the Andes virus, can have a mortality rate of up to 40%.

The WHO said it is conducting international contact tracing. "Passengers who disembarked from the ship were informed of the hantavirus case by the ships' operators and asked to report any signs and symptoms," a spokesperson said, adding that this process led to the identification of the Swiss case.

"Working with national authorities and the ship's operators, our teams have built a list of who was where when, in order to ensure that any potential exposure is documented and people can get help if they develop symptoms," the spokesperson added.

The MV Hondius cruise ship departs the port in Praia, Cape Verde, on Wednesday.

However, the passenger who spoke to El País criticised the timing of the response, claiming that some individuals were only contacted days after leaving the vessel. "We were in touch with them and kept asking ourselves, ‘When are they going to tell them something?' Some people weren't contacted until yesterday," they said.

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