22 UK Passengers Released, American Tests Positive, Unrelated Illinois Case Emerges — Hantavirus Outbreak Enters New Phase

The UK Releases 22 — But They're Not Free Yet

Twenty-two people who were evacuated to Arrowe Park Hospital in Wirral, Merseyside, are now set to leave after completing 72 hours of hospital isolation, according to BBC News.

They still face 42 more days of home isolation — the full incubation window for the Andes strain of hantavirus.

The group includes 20 British nationals, one German UK resident, and one Japanese passenger. Public health specialists will determine whether each individual can safely isolate at home or needs a separate location arranged.

Prof. Robin May, chief scientific officer at the UK Health Security Agency, said the group was "healthy and asymptomatic" earlier this week.

An American Has Now Tested Positive

Fox News reported that one American at the National Quarantine Unit at the University of Nebraska Medical Center has tested positive for hantavirus. A second American is showing symptoms.

This was confirmed by the Department of Health and Human Services. Sixteen Americans are being monitored in Nebraska; two more are at Atlanta's Emory University Hospital — the same facility that handled the first U.S. Ebola patients in 2014.

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp said of the facility: "There's nobody better to handle" these patients than Emory's doctors.

The Illinois Case Has Nothing to Do With the Cruise

Illinois has a completely separate, unrelated hantavirus case.

The Illinois Department of Public Health confirmed Tuesday that a resident of Winnebago County may have contracted hantavirus while cleaning a home with rodent droppings present. They did NOT travel abroad. Their symptoms were mild. No hospitalization required.

Officials suspect this is the North American strain — NOT the Andes strain from the cruise ship. The IDPH stated: "Unlike the Andes strain responsible for the cruise outbreak, the North American strains are not known to spread from person to person."

The NY Post reported this case. Most outlets either buried or skipped it entirely.

For context: Illinois has recorded only seven hantavirus cases since surveillance began in 1993. The U.S. as a whole has seen 890 cases between 1993 and 2023.

Italy Dodged a Scare

Bloomberg reported that Italy had a suspected hantavirus case that came back negative, easing concerns about the outbreak jumping further across Europe.

Spain Joins the Confirmed Case List

A Spanish passenger evacuated from the MV Hondius tested positive for hantavirus after repatriation, Spain's health ministry confirmed Tuesday according to the Associated Press via NPR. That passenger is quarantined at a military hospital in Madrid.

The total case count now stands at 11 reported cases, 9 confirmed. Three people have died — including a Dutch couple believed to be the first exposed during a South American port visit.

The French Patient Is Still on Life Support

The French woman at Bichat Hospital in Paris remains on an artificial lung device — what Dr. Xavier Lescure, an infectious disease specialist at the hospital, described as "the final stage of supportive care." The device pumps blood through an artificial lung, oxygenates it, and returns it to the body. The goal: give her lungs and heart time to recover. Her condition remains critical.

Five Americans Exposed on Flights — Not Even on the Ship

The NY Post flagged a detail other outlets glossed over: five additional Americans are being monitored despite never boarding the MV Hondius. Two New Jersey residents, two Marylanders, and one Californian were on international flights that carried passengers from the stricken cruise. None have shown symptoms. All are under health department supervision for the full 42-day window.

Hantavirus is NOT easily spread person-to-person — except for the Andes strain, which the WHO and CDC acknowledge has demonstrated limited human-to-human transmission potential. That is why flight contacts are being monitored.

What WHO Is Actually Saying

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Tuesday that confirmed and suspected cases have only appeared among the ship's passengers and crew. "At the moment, there is no sign that we are seeing the start of a larger outbreak," Tedros said — while immediately adding that "the situation could change" given the long incubation period.

Media Coverage

Left-leaning outlets have focused on the human interest angle — the New York Times ran a piece on travel influencer Jake Rosmarin documenting his Nebraska quarantine on social media.

Right-leaning coverage has flagged the American positive test and the Illinois unrelated case, though some outlets have amplified concerns without providing the critical distinction between the Andes strain and the North American strain. The Illinois case is not the same disease, and it does not spread human-to-human.

What Comes Next

Hundreds of people across multiple countries are counting down 42-day clocks. One American has confirmed hantavirus. The French patient's condition remains uncertain. The ship is sailing back to the Netherlands for disinfection.

The monitoring period continues, with authorities watching for any sign of the outbreak expanding.