Seven people have been struck down by a deadly virus —and three people have died— after an outbreak on a luxury cruise ship in West African waters packed with British holidaymakers.
The World Health Organisation confirmed on Monday that two cases have beenlaboratory-confirmedand five are suspected following the outbreak on the Dutch-flagged MV Hondius, which is currently held off the coast of West Africa.
One passenger is in a critical condition while three others have so far shown only mild symptoms. A British man who fell ill on 27 April left the vessel and is currently being treated at a private clinic in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Around 150 passengers remain stranded after Cape Verde authorities barred the ship from docking over safety concerns.
Oceanwide Expeditions said it was exploring whether passengers could be screened and disembarked on the islands of Las Palmas and Tenerife.
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Of the three people who have died - two are a Dutch couple and one a German national. The Dutch victims were a 70-year-old man who passed away on St Helena on 11 April and his 69-year-old wife, who collapsed at Johannesburg's O.R. Tambo International Airport and died in South Africa weeks later. A German passenger on board died on 2 May.
Operator Oceanwide Expeditions said it has not yet been confirmed whether the Dutch couple died from hantavirus. The cause of the German passenger's death has equally not been established.
The ship is attempting to arrange the repatriation of two crew members with symptoms — one British and one Dutch — along with the body of the German national and the return of a surviving travelling companion who does not have symptoms, reports the Canadian news outlet CBC.
Source: Daily Express :: World Feed
