A Japanese national arrived in the United Kingdom on Sunday after disembarking the hantavirus-hit cruise ship MV Hondius. According to Japan’s Foreign Ministry, the individual was provided a seat on a British government charter flight departing from Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands. The person is reported to be in good health, but will undergo 45 days of health monitoring.
The individual, who is currently at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside, was offered a seat on the flight under the Memorandum of Cooperation on Mutual Assistance to Japanese and British Nationals Abroad, signed by the UK and Japan last month to provide a framework for cooperation between the two countries in protecting their citizens overseas during crises.
No Immediate Impact From Hantavirus in Japan, Says Kihara
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary, Minoru Kihara, meanwhile, said the country does not expect the hantavirus outbreak to have an immediate impact domestically. “We will make every effort to take necessary infection control measures while monitoring the situation,” he said at a press conference on Monday. He also urged the public to avoid contact with animals while traveling abroad.
The Japanese government has instructed quarantine authorities to strengthen screening measures for arrivals from South America, where the Andes strain of hantavirus is commonly found, particularly in Argentina and Chile. Travelers reporting health problems are being asked about any prior contact with rodents, which are the primary carriers of the virus.
Nine Cases Linked to the Outbreak
The Andes strain of hantavirus is considered capable of human-to-human transmission, although such cases are believed to be extremely rare. Health authorities say transmission among passengers aboard the ship has been confirmed. The World Health Organization (WHO) has so far reported nine cases linked to the outbreak, seven confirmed and two suspected. Three passengers have died.
The luxury cruise ship docked in Tenerife on Sunday. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus sought to reassure the public in a post on X, saying the outbreak does not pose the same level of global risk seen during the coronavirus pandemic. “I need you to hear me clearly: this is not another COVID-19,” he wrote. “The current public health risk from hantavirus remains low.”
