A deadly virus, a cruise ship nobody wants to dock, and Marjorie Taylor Greene already pushing horse paste
The big picture The MV Hondius — a luxury cruise ship that departed Argentina on April 1 — is now at the center of a global hantavirus outbreak. Three passengers are dead, eight people are infected across multiple countries, and the ship is finally en route to Spain’s Canary Islands after Cape Verde refused to let it dock. Four U.S. states are now monitoring passengers who got off at earlier stops, and the WHO has confirmed the outbreak is the rare Andes strain of hantavirus, the only strain known to spread between people.
Why it matters Health officials are stressing this is not COVID. The math of transmission is genuinely different. BUT the outbreak is testing how a post-COVID world handles a new infectious disease threat in real time — countries fighting over who has to dock the ship, regional leaders publicly opposing their own national governments, and an information environment already flooded with the same misinformation patterns from five years ago.
What we know The MV Hondius left Ushuaia, Argentina on April 1 with stops planned in Antarctica, Tristan da Cunha, and St. Helena. Three passengers are dead, including a Dutch couple and a German national. There are now eight cases globally, three confirmed and five suspected. Three people were medically evacuated this week, two flown to the Netherlands and one diverted to Gran Canaria after Morocco refused to allow the medical plane to refuel.
Where the cases are showing up The ship still has around 150 people on board. BUT roughly 30 to 40 passengers got off at St. Helena before the outbreak became known, and authorities are racing to track them down. One has been confirmed positive in Switzerland and is being treated in Zurich. South African authorities confirmed two more Andes strain cases in former passengers. A flight attendant in the Netherlands is hospitalized after coming into contact with a passenger who later died.
In the U.S., at least four states — Arizona, Virginia, Georgia, and California — are monitoring passengers who got off earlier in the trip. None are showing symptoms so far. The CDC says it’s coordinating with international partners, with 17 Americans still on board.
How this likely started Argentine officials told the AP the leading theory is that the Dutch couple who died contracted hantavirus on a bird-watching tour in Ushuaia before they boarded the ship. The tour reportedly included a stop at a landfill, where they may have been exposed to the rats that carry the Andes strain. The WHO is operating on the assumption the virus came aboard with already-infected passengers.
Why this is not a COVID repeat WHO’s top epidemic expert Maria Van Kerkhove was direct, saying “this is not coronavirus” and “this is not the start of a COVID pandemic.” Hantavirus typically spreads through contact with infected rodent droppings, urine, or saliva. The Andes strain is the rare exception that can spread person-to-person, BUT only through close contact like sharing a bed or sharing food. Public risk is low. There is currently no specific treatment.
The misinformation is already here On cue, Marjorie Taylor Greene is already calling the virus a “bioweapon” and the unreleased vaccine a “poison.” She also told her followers the treatment is ivermectin, vitamin D, and zinc — adding that those who “refused to lockdown, mask up, and get vaxxed took the good ole horse paste and also developed natural immunity.”
To be clear, there is no evidence ivermectin treats hantavirus. There is no “natural immunity” to a virus most people have never been exposed to. Animal-grade ivermectin is not safe for human use under any circumstance.
The fight over the ship Cape Verde refused to let the ship dock. Spain stepped in, agreeing to receive the ship at Tenerife in the Canary Islands. BUT regional president Fernando Clavijo is openly opposing the decision, telling radio station COPE he won’t “blindly jeopardize the safety of the Canary Islands population.” He’s requested an urgent meeting with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, though the national government has the final call. The ship is expected to arrive over the weekend, with passengers potentially quarantined for up to eight weeks given the long incubation period.
The quieter concern at home Beyond the virus itself, there’s growing scrutiny of how prepared the U.S. is to respond. The Trump administration has cut CDC staffing, and the U.S. withdrawal from the WHO means less real-time access to international health intelligence. CDC acting director Jay Bhattacharya has said the agency is coordinating internationally, BUT some public health watchers say the slower communication this time is itself the warning sign.
By the numbers
3 — confirmed deaths from the outbreak
8 — total cases (3 confirmed, 5 suspected)
150 — approximate passengers and crew still on board
4 — U.S. states monitoring possible exposures
17 — American passengers still on the ship
8 weeks — maximum incubation period for hantavirus
30–40 — passengers who got off at St. Helena before the outbreak surfaced
0 — specific treatments currently available for hantavirus
The bottom line Hantavirus is a real, serious disease, but the public risk from this outbreak is low — the WHO is being deliberate about that. The harder test is whether the global response can stay coordinated when individual countries are already squabbling over who has to take the ship, the U.S. is operating outside the main international system, and the misinformation engine is already up and running. The disease may stay contained. The conversation around it almost certainly won’t.