90-Second Read: Three people from King County potentially exposed to Hantavirus

Three people in King County are being monitored after they were potentially exposed to the Andes type of Hantavirus linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship. Health officials say they were exposed on a flight from South Africa to Amsterdam, seated near a sick cruise ship passenger who later tested positive for the virus. In contrast, we have decades of information about Hantavirus." The latest Hantavirus outbreak has reached 11 reported cases worldwide. One of the residents potentially exposed was a passenger on the ship and is being monitored at the National Quarantine Unit at the University of Nebraska. County health officials said the flight was more than two weeks ago, but they were only notified of the possible exposure by the state's health department on Sunday.

That individual was only later determined to be a confirmed case of Andes virus, at which point traceback activities and notifications begin." The Andes virus is the only type of Hantavirus known to spread person-to-person. The two King County residents who were exposed on the flight are conducting daily temperature checks and are in regular contact with the county's health department. The World Health Organization states that symptoms of Hantavirus typically begin one to eight weeks after exposure. The other two are members of the same household and are currently monitoring for symptoms at home in King County. KIRO 7 also asked if it was possible that other passengers were exposed and now in Washington.

Health officials state the risk to the public remains low. Valenciano, Health Officer and Acting Director for Seattle and King County Public Health emphasized the current situation. I want to reiterate that there are currently no cases of the virus in King County and the risk to the public remains low," Dr. Issaquah resident Samantha King contracted Hantavirus from a rodent's nest several years ago, an experience she described as life-threatening when KIRO 7 spoke to her in 2017. KIRO 7 asked the state's health department why that notification took so long.

There is currently no licensed specific antiviral treatment or vaccine for Hantavirus, according to the WHO. It's not the first time Hantavirus has impacted the region. Johnson said the department has only received notifications from the CDC about possible exposures linked to these King County residents. Health officials declined to disclose their specific residential location. Unlike that case, this new outbreak involves a strain that can spread person-to-person, though health officials are quick to distinguish it from the emergence of COVID-19.