A new confirmed case of Hantavirus has been recorded in France, as a passenger on the cruise ship MV Hondius tested positive for the virus following medical tests.
According to French Health Minister Stéphanie Rist, the woman’s condition worsened overnight and tests confirmed she was infected with the virus.
The other four French passengers who were repatriated with her were found to be negative, but are due to be retested. Meanwhile, French authorities have already begun extensive contact tracing, with 22 people under surveillance.
The passenger in question is part of the group of five French citizens who returned from the cruise ship yesterday and were placed under strict quarantine.
At the same time, US authorities announced another positive incident among the ship’s passengers. According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one American passenger tested slightly positive for the Andean virus after a PCR molecular test, while another had mild symptoms.
A total of 17 U.S. citizens are being repatriated by air under State Department responsibility, while health authorities are closely monitoring the situation.
In Greece, the Greek passenger on the ship was transferred early Monday morning to Attikon University Hospital, where he is being treated as a precautionary measure in a specially designed negative pressure chamber in the Special Infections Unit.
Health Minister Adonis Georgiades clarified that the Greek citizen is in very good condition and shows no symptoms, stressing that the quarantine is applied solely for preventive reasons due to a possible incubation period.
