US Passenger Tests Positive for Hantavirus After Cruise Evacuation

American citizens evacuated from a Dutch cruise ship hit by a hantavirus outbreak arrived in Nebraska early Monday under heavy precautions, with one testing mildly positive for the Andes strain and another showing symptoms. The group of 17 US passengers and one British national living in America touched down at Eppley Airfield in Omaha around 2:30 a.m., where they were moved to a specialized quarantine facility at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

Health officials placed two passengers in biocontainment units during the flight from Spain's Canary Islands as a precaution. One has mild symptoms while the other returned a mildly positive PCR test for the virus, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. The positive case involves no current symptoms but will be isolated separately for further testing. Passengers face up to 42 days of observation, a period recommended by the World Health Organization to cover the virus incubation window.

The MV Hondius, which had been sailing in South American waters before the outbreak emerged, has now been linked to seven confirmed hantavirus cases and two suspected ones. Three passengers have died, including at least two with confirmed infections. A fourth death occurred before testing could confirm the cause. The Andes variant stands out because it allows limited human-to-human transmission, unlike most hantavirus strains that spread mainly through rodent droppings or urine. Symptoms typically start with fever, fatigue, and muscle aches before progressing to breathing difficulties in severe cases.

French authorities reported a separate positive case in a woman who returned to Paris, where her condition worsened overnight. Twenty-two contacts have been traced there. Two British nationals with confirmed infections are receiving treatment in the Netherlands and South Africa. Spanish officials continue to manage remaining passengers and crew on Tenerife, with more than 90 people from 19 countries still being processed for repatriation.

Officials across multiple countries insist the broader public risk remains very low. Yet the use of full protective gear for disembarkation, dedicated government flights, and extended quarantine periods suggests the situation carries more weight than routine reassurances imply. The ship itself, now docked in the Canary Islands, marks the first known cruise vessel outbreak of this virus. Passengers described a tense final stretch at sea, with the captain later issuing a statement praising their resilience while urging respect for privacy.

The Nebraska facility, known as a regional center for emerging pathogens, has prepared for exactly these scenarios through years of federal and state training. Each arrival will receive clinical assessment and care tailored to their status. One passenger who tested positive but remains asymptomatic will stay in the biocontainment unit until follow-up results clarify the picture.

This incident highlights how quickly an illness contracted thousands of miles away can reach American soil through routine international travel. With rodent-borne diseases occasionally crossing borders via ships and planes, the episode serves as another reminder that health threats do not respect national boundaries or official timelines for reassurance.