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All Canadians who were exposed to the Andes hantavirus earlier this year linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship have finished their self-isolation period, Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada said on social media Monday.
Four Canadians were presumed to have been exposed to the rare virus aboard the luxury ship and immediately went into isolation upon returning to Canada May 10.
One of them, a traveller from the Yukon, subsequently tested positive for the virus, but fully recovered earlier this month.
Three people died in the outbreak, and epidemiologists confirmed at least 11 cases of hantavirus connected to the cruise ship.
It’s believed the outbreak originated in Argentina. A Dutch couple that died in April are believed to have contracted the virus before they boarded the cruise ship in the Argentine city of Ushuaia.
A lab has confirmed one Canadian who travelled on a cruise ship at the centre of an outbreak has tested positive for hantavirus, but health officials are confident they’ve taken the necessary precautions to prevent further spread.
The vessel, which began its journey from Argentina April 1, eventually docked May 10 in Tenerife, Spain, where all passengers and most crew disembarked and immediately went into quarantine in their respective home countries.
Hantavirus is relatively rare. In North America, it is usually contracted by inhaling contaminated residue from rodent droppings.
But health officials believe the Andes strain, involved in the Hondius outbreak, can be transmitted between people where there has been prolonged close contact.