What to know about hantavirus, the illness suspected in a cruise ship outbreak - AP News

Three people have died and others have been sickened after what some health authorities suspect may be a rare hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean. Hantaviruses exist throughout the world and are spread mainly by contact with rodents. It's rare and not easy for a hantavirus to spread between people. In severe cases, the virus can cause a deadly lung infection or hemorrhagic fever with kidney failure. There is no specific treatment or cure for hantavirus infections, but early medical attention can increase the chance of survival.

What to know about hantavirus, the illness suspected in a cruise ship outbreak

A cruise ship with nearly 150 people aboard was waiting for help off the coast of Cape Verde in the Atlantic Ocean on Monday after three passengers died and at least three other people were left seriously ill in a suspected outbreak of the rare hantavirus, according to the World Health Organization and the ship’s operator.

Three people have died and others have been sickened by what health authorities suspect is a hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean. (Production by Lucy Luo)

A rodent-borne illness is suspected of causing an outbreak aboard a cruise ship that has killed three people and sickened others. (AP Video shot by Susan Montoya Bryan, Production by Ao Gao)

The MV Hondius cruise ship is anchored at a port in Praia, Cape Verde, Monday, May 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Arilson Almeida)

Research scientist Robert Nofchissey prepares samples of inactivated material as part of hantavirus research at the Center for Global Health at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on Monday, May 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

Steven Bradfute, an associate professor and associate director of the Center for Global Health at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, discusses sequencing efforts to learn more about hantavirus in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on Monday, May 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A rodent-borne illness is suspected of causing an outbreak aboard a cruise ship that has killed three people and sickened others.

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