Netherlands Tests Flight Attendant for Hantavirus as Officials Track Cruise Ship Outbreak
The New York Times • • business
Key Points:
- A Dutch flight attendant is being tested for hantavirus after contact with an infected individual linked to a deadly outbreak on a cruise ship, according to the Dutch health ministry.
- Health officials emphasize that human-to-human transmission of hantavirus, typically carried by rodents, is very rare and aim to reduce public concern.
- The flight attendant, reportedly employed by KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, may have been exposed through a passenger who briefly boarded a flight before dying from the virus.
- Since April 11, three passengers aboard the Dutch-flagged MV Hondius cruise ship have died and at least five others have fallen ill with hantavirus symptoms, as reported by the World Health Organization.
- The initial fatalities included a 69-year-old Dutch man who died on the ship and his wife, who died in South Africa while attempting to return to the Netherlands.
