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Australia Quarantines 6 Hantavirus-Hit Cruise Passengers
(MENAFN) All six Australian and New Zealand passengers aboard the hantavirus-stricken cruise ship MV Hondius are reported to be in good condition, with strict quarantine measures awaiting them upon their return home, authorities confirmed Tuesday.
Health Minister Mark Butler, speaking in an interview with media, said five Australians and one New Zealander were expected to first transit through the Netherlands before continuing their journey back to Australia.
"They were due to land at 8.10 am our time, and they'll be transited to a hotel quarantine facility while the flight arrangements from the Netherlands to Australia are finalized," Butler said.
The minister described securing return flights as a considerable logistical challenge, noting the passengers were expected back over the course of the week. The Australian government, he said, has been working closely with the Department of Foreign Affairs to arrange flights with crews prepared to isolate following the journey.
Once back on Australian soil in Western Australia, the six passengers will be placed in a purpose-built quarantine facility for approximately three weeks. Health authorities will then assess what further monitoring may be required throughout the virus's 42-day incubation period.
Butler emphasized that Australia's quarantine response significantly exceeds measures adopted by most other countries repatriating passengers from the affected vessel, many of which have opted for just a few days in centralized quarantine before allowing home isolation.
The outbreak — caused by the rare Andes strain of hantavirus — has resulted in five confirmed cases and three deaths, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Scientists identified the Andes variant as the culprit, notable for being the only known hantavirus strain capable of spreading directly between humans, typically through close contact.
The WHO also confirmed that two of the passengers who subsequently died had traveled through Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay prior to boarding the ship.
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