Two cruise ship passengers with possible hantavirus symptoms were taken to Atlanta hospital; CDC releases guidance

ATLANTA, Ga. (WTOC) - All 18 Americans who were aboard the cruise ship connected to a deadly hantavirus outbreak are now back in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC says at least one of the returning passengers has tested positive for hantavirus. Officials also confirmed two people who were showing symptoms were removed from a flight at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Tuesday morning.

The two passengers were wearing full-body protective gear when they were escorted off the plane, and an ambulance transported them to Emory University Hospital, officials said.

The CDC said both patients are showing symptoms, but no positive test has been confirmed for either of them.

CDC monitoring additional people

While the two new patients are being evaluated in Atlanta, the CDC said it is also monitoring two people who showed symptoms last week. One of those individuals is from Brunswick.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said the two new patients at Emory Hospital will receive the care they need.

“We’re doing like we’ve done in the past… with COVID-19… we’re as prepared as any state in the country to do this, and it’s just the right thing to do…You would want your state to come to your aid, and that’s exactly what we’re gonna do,” Kemp said.

Officials say public risk remains low

Health officials emphasized that while hantavirus is serious, the CDC says the risk to the general public remains extremely low.

Officials said preparations were already underway with area health leaders to identify a quarantine location before the patients arrived, and they urged the public not to panic.

World Health Organization Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the WHO is coordinating with U.S. officials.

“We’re in contact with U.S. colleagues both in Atlanta, and there are some here in Tenerife. And they are monitoring everything, and they have made all preparations, they have their plan in place,” he said.

Questions for Georgia DPH

WTOC News said it reached out again to the Georgia Department of Public Health with questions about:

• What monitoring protocols are being followed for the people now in Atlanta, and
• What circumstances have changed for returning Americans that require quarantine, while other residents with similar exposure levels are not being quarantined (as far as is known).

Background on the outbreak

The outbreak aboard the MV Hondius has killed three people since the ship left Argentina in early April.

The CDC says the incubation period for hantavirus ranges from 4 to 42 days.

The CDC defines exposure as:

• Anyone who was on board the Hondius since April 6,
• Being within 6 feet of someone showing symptoms for a total of 15 minutes,
• Having direct physical contact with a patient, or
• Having contact with respiratory secretions or other bodily fluids from someone showing symptoms.

The ship is anchored near Spain’s Canary Islands.