MV Hondius Passenger Pleads for Safety as Cape Verde Blocks Ship After Hantavirus Deaths
A passenger aboard the MV Hondius has posted an emotional plea from the cruise ship as Cape Verde continues to block docking during a suspected hantavirus outbreak that has left three people dead.
Reuters reported that medics were working Monday to evacuate two symptomatic people from the Oceanwide Expeditions vessel, which was being held off West Africa with about 150 people still aboard. Cape Verde has not allowed the Dutch-flagged ship to dock as a precaution, citing protection of national public health.
The social media reaction has become a central part of the story because it shows the pressure building onboard. Reuters identified the passenger as U.S. travel blogger Jake Rosmarin, who posted a tearful Instagram video from the ship and said passengers were dealing with uncertainty while waiting for a safe path home.
Oceanwide Expeditions has said it is managing a serious medical situation. Reuters reported that the company is looking into whether passengers could be screened and disembarked in Las Palmas or Tenerife if Cape Verde does not clear the ship.
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The confirmed medical picture remains narrower than some headlines suggest. Reuters reported that hantavirus has so far been confirmed in a British man being treated in South Africa, while Oceanwide said the third person who died was a German national.
The World Health Organization said the risk to the wider public remains low and that the virus is not easily transmitted between people. WHO officials said hantavirus infections are uncommon and usually linked to exposure to infected rodents.
The practical consequence is immediate: passengers and crew are caught between urgent medical needs and a government’s authority to restrict port access during a suspected infectious-disease emergency.
The next step is medical evacuation, screening and a decision on whether the MV Hondius can disembark passengers in Cape Verde or continue toward another port.
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