90-Second Read: Planes, trains and pandemics: Lessons from COVID‑19 about travel risks posed by Hantavirus and Ebola

With the upcoming World Cup poised to drive a surge in Canadian tourism, recent Hantavirus and Ebola virus outbreaks remind us of the need to effectively manage travel-related public health risks in a world on the move. Recent outbreaks of Hantavirus among passengers of the MV Hondius cruise ship, and Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda, have raised concerns about risks associated with travel. Rapid response to travel-related risks of Hantavirus was adequately resourced, globally coordinated and appears so far to have balanced the need for protecting the health of MV Hondius passengers while preventing the wider health-harming spread of disease. As researchers on the Pandemics and Borders Project, we have spent the past six years studying the use of international travel measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and other global public health emergencies.

With varied national responses to these risks, how can we apply lessons from COVID-19 to guide effective public health responses? With 13 reported cases, including three deaths to date, the recent Hantavirus outbreak was reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) on May 2, following the medical evacuation of a passenger from the MV Hondius. As a result, the response to this outbreak is in some ways " back at square one." Amid evolving evidence on best practices, some travel measures adopted in response to BVD diverge from what is currently known about how to effectively manage travel-related health risks. The complexity of whether, when and how to apply different types of international travel measures means that evidence on best practices continues to evolve.

International travel volumes have now fully recovered from the downturn during the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 upended previous scientific consensus that restricting international travel, to prevent cross-border spread of disease, should be an action of last resort. Stark differences in Hantavirus and Ebola responses stem partly from longstanding fault lines in global systems for preventing the international spread of infectious disease. These case studies remind us that the capacity of governments to make coordinated, risk-based, real-time decisions about travel measures remains an ongoing challenge.

Existing medical interventions and testing for Ebola are less effective against BVD than other Ebola viruses. As seen during the COVID-19 pandemic, these often politically motivated measures can also fuel harmful divisiveness, racism and discrimination. For example, United States restrictions for travelers from three East African countries resulted in the diversion of a U.S.-bound plane to Montréal after a Congolese passenger was denied entry.