Government says 3 Canadians isolating at home after hantavirus ship outbreak
Posted May 7, 2026 10:07:55 AM.
Last Updated May 7, 2026 05:48:28 PM.
Three Canadians with connections to a deadly hantavirus-stricken cruise are self-isolating at home in Ontario and Quebec, the federal government says.
Two Canadian passengers disembarked on the remote South Atlantic island of St. Helena almost two weeks ago, according to Dutch-based Oceanwide Expeditions. Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said they were on the same returning flight as a third Canadian who was not on the vessel.
Quebec’s health minister said that a third Canadian, from Quebec, was not on the ship but is isolating because they possibly came into contact during an international trip with a person infected with hantavirus.
However, a statement from the minister says they “were not in close proximity, and the risk of transmission is therefore extremely low.”
In a statement posted online, Anand said all three Canadians are asymptomatic and have been self-isolating.
Federal officials have not yet responded to questions from The Canadian Press on when and where affected people arrived in Canada, or whether public-health officials would brief media.
Anand said in her statement that Ottawa has been in touch with four Canadians who are among those still on the cruise, while consular officials are on their way to the Canary Islands to monitor the situation. The boat is anticipated to disembark in Granadilla, Tenerife, on Sunday morning, but the cruise operator says that may change.
Anand and Health Minister Marjorie Michel would not take questions from reporters but said a team is working across departments and that public-health protocols will be followed.
The World Health Organization said Thursday it has received reports of eight cases, including three deaths, in connection with the MV Hondius outbreak of the rodent-borne Andes virus, the only hantavirus known to be capable of limited transmission between humans.
“Given the incubation period of the Andes virus, which can be up to six weeks, it’s possible that more cases may be reported,” WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.
About 150 remaining passengers are isolating in their cabins, and none are showing symptoms, according to Dutch-based Oceanwide Expeditions.
Oceanwide Expeditions said the two Canadians who disembarked on April 24 were among 30 passengers from 12 countries who got off the boat that day, including the body of a Dutch man who died on April 11, and his symptomatic wife, who died the next day.
The operator said a third death took place on May 2 after a woman on the ship developed symptoms on April 28.
Earlier on Thursday, Ontario Health Minister Sylvia Jones said two residents have been isolating since they returned home, and it is believed that they are not a transmission risk.
“But it is fluid, and we’ll continue to have those monitoring situations,” Jones said at a press conference.
Jones said public health officials are monitoring the passengers on a daily basis to make sure that they are isolating.
She said the province is preparing to see if there are any other individuals who need to return to Canada and Ontario, and that they are working with federal partners to make sure there is a consistent approach.
She said the incubation and monitoring period will likely be around 30 days.
In previous outbreaks of Andes virus, transmission between people has been associated with close and prolonged contact, particularly among household members, intimate partners, and people providing medical care, WHO’s director-general said.
“That appears to be the case in the current situation,” he said. “While this is a serious incident, WHO assesses the public health risk as low.”
