90-Second Read: Hantavirus Update: American tests positive as passengers return to US

Countries around the world on Monday continued repatriating passengers from a cruise ship hit by a deadly Hantavirus outbreak, isolating or quarantining travelers, including a French woman and an American who tested positive. The World Health Organization says three passengers have died and at least six cases of Hantavirus have been confirmed. Health officials stress that the risk to the broader public remains low in what is the first‑ever Hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship. Seventeen Americans evacuated from a Dutch ship at the center of a Hantavirus outbreak in the Atlantic have arrived in Nebraska.

As of Monday, 54 passengers and crew remained on the ship. WHO did not publicly confirm it was responding to a suspected Hantavirus outbreak until early May, when the ship was near Cape Verde. WHO recommends that countries conduct daily health checks on returning passengers, either at home or in specialized facilities, said Maria Van Kerkhove, the agency's director of epidemic and pandemic preparedness. Passengers began flying home Sunday on military and government aircraft after the MV Hondius anchored in the Canary Islands.

Lab results for the American who tested positive were inconclusive, WHO spokesperson Sarah Tyler said Monday. A Dutch aircraft arriving Monday afternoon will carry passengers who were originally set to leave on an Australian plane, Spain's Health Minister Mónica García said. Hantavirus typically spreads through rodent droppings and is not easily transmitted between people. However, the Andes virus identified in this outbreak may spread between people in rare cases.

Planes arriving in Tenerife were scheduled to fly out passengers from more than 20 countries, with the evacuation expected to conclude Monday. Officials say 22 were expected to disembark, while 32 will stay aboard as the vessel returns to the Netherlands. South African health officials said a British man hospitalized in Johannesburg after being evacuated April 27 is gradually improving.