Singapore Isolates Passengers as Hantavirus Outbreak Triggers Worldwide Alert

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Manama: Global health authorities are intensifying surveillance after fresh developments linked to the deadly hantavirus outbreak aboard the Dutch expedition ship MV Hondius, as two passengers in Singapore were placed in isolation pending test results.

Singapore’s Communicable Diseases Agency confirmed that two residents, aged 65 and 67, who had been onboard the ship are now being monitored at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases. One has mild cold-like symptoms, while the other remains asymptomatic. Officials said the risk to the public remains low.

The latest development comes as international contact tracing expands after around 30 passengers left the vessel before the virus was formally detected, prompting health alerts across multiple countries including the United States, the Netherlands, Switzerland and South Africa.

So far, at least eight confirmed or suspected cases have been linked to the outbreak, including three deaths involving a Dutch couple and a German passenger. Several patients have been medically evacuated to hospitals in Europe for treatment.

The World Health Organisation has confirmed the outbreak involves the rare Andes strain of hantavirus, the only known strain capable of limited human-to-human transmission. Experts believe the first victim was likely infected before boarding the vessel in Argentina, possibly through exposure to infected rodents.

Hantavirus is primarily spread through contact with rodent urine, droppings or saliva. It can lead to Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome, beginning with fever, fatigue and body aches before rapidly progressing to severe breathing difficulties. Fatality rates in severe cases can reach 35–40 percent.

Despite the outbreak, experts stress this is not a COVID-style threat, with human transmission considered rare and requiring prolonged close contact.

The ship is now heading toward the Canary Islands, where further quarantine, testing and evacuation measures are expected as authorities race to contain one of the world’s rarest viral outbreaks at sea.