The 2026 outbreak linked to the cruise ship M/V Hondius was unusual because it involved Andes virus (ANDV), a hantavirus species that can spread between people in limited circumstances after close and prolonged contact. That distinction matters: it is not accurate to say that hantaviruses never spread from person to person.
WHO was notified of the cluster on 2 May 2026. By 2 July, 13 cases had been reported globally, including three deaths. Twelve were laboratory-confirmed and one remained probable. All confirmed cases were among people who had travelled on the ship.
Public-health authorities used international contact tracing, testing, isolation and follow-up because ANDV can have an incubation period of several weeks. WHO assessed the risk to the wider global population as low throughout the event.
By early July, all identified contacts had completed the 42-day follow-up period without additional secondary cases being detected. WHO therefore considered transmission interrupted and the outbreak contained.
The event is a useful example of why infectious-disease reporting needs strain-specific context. Most human hantavirus infections are associated with exposure to infected rodents or their excreta, whereas Andes virus is unusual in having documented limited person-to-person transmission.
Source: World Health Organization — Hantavirus outbreak linked to cruise ship travel, 2 July 2026.
