By Nomazulu Moyo
The Department of Health has confirmed the deaths of two international tourists and the critical illness of a third after an outbreak of severe acute respiratory infection aboard a cruise ship travelling past South African waters.
According to a media statement issued on Monday, health authorities were alerted by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) about the cases linked to the vessel MV Hondius, which was en route from Ushuaia in southern Argentina to the Canary Islands.
The ship, carrying about 150 passengers from various countries, had been travelling for roughly three weeks, stopping at multiple remote islands including Antarctica, the Falklands, St Helena and Ascension. Health officials said the first patient, a 70-year-old man from the Netherlands, fell ill while the ship was travelling between Ushuaia and St Helena Island.
“He presented with fever, headache, abdominal pain, and diarrhoea,” the department said. He later died upon arrival at St Helena, where his remains are being held pending repatriation. A second patient, a 69-year-old woman and spouse of the first, collapsed at OR Tambo International Airport while in transit to the Netherlands.
“She was taken to a nearby health facility around Kempton Park for medical attention and unfortunately passed away,” the statement said, adding that her laboratory results are still outstanding. A third patient, a British national, remains in critical condition in isolation at a private hospital in Sandton after testing positive for hantavirus. Health authorities described hantavirus as “a rare but potentially deadly virus transmitted primarily by rodents.”
The patient initially became ill while travelling between St Helena and Ascension Island and was later evacuated to South Africa after his condition worsened. Despite the seriousness of the cases, the Department of Health has urged calm. “In our view, there is no need for the public to panic because only two patients from the cruise ship have been within our borders,” the department said.
Authorities are currently conducting contact tracing in collaboration with the NICD and Gauteng Health Department to identify and monitor anyone who may have been exposed. The World Health Organization is coordinating a broader international response involving affected countries and island territories.
Hantavirus is a rare viral infection typically spread through contact with infected rodents or their droppings. It does not usually spread easily between people, but can cause severe illness, particularly affecting the lungs.
Symptoms can initially resemble flu, including fever, headaches and muscle pain, before progressing to more serious respiratory complications in severe cases. Outbreaks are uncommon and are often linked to specific environmental exposure rather than widespread community transmission. Health authorities have not indicated any broader outbreak in South Africa linked to this incident.
