The Virginia Department of Health said Thursday it is monitoring a resident who recently returned from a cruise ship linked to a deadly hantavirus outbreak.
The person had been aboard the Dutch-flagged expedition cruise ship MV Hondius, which became the center of the international public health response after multiple cases of the rare virus were discovered on board.
The department said the person is in good health and poses a low risk to the public.
The traveler has returned to Virginia and is being monitored by public health, officials said.
Hantaviruses are usually spread through contact with infected rodents, and human-to-human transmission is uncommon.
State officials said there were fewer than 30 U.S. citizens on board the ship, and a small number of potentially infected Virginia residents could be identified in the coming days.
“Overall, we believe the risk to the public is low,” the department said, noting that it is working closely with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and local health agencies.
The World Health Organization has report At least eight suspected or confirmed cases have been linked to the ship, including three deaths, as authorities investigate the spread of the virus.
(Reporting by Padmanabhan Ananthan in Bengaluru; Editing by Jonathan Ananda)
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