Bay Area resident exposed to hantavirus on MV Hondius cruise showing no symptoms, California health officials say
San Francisco Bay Area health officials provided an update on a resident who was exposed to the hantavirus during a cruise in the Atlantic, adding that the risk to the public remains low.
On Monday, the Santa Clara County Public Health Department said the person is under close monitoring and restricted activities with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines.
Officials confirmed over the weekend that the person was exposed to the virus while on the MV Hondius. The strain identified in the outbreak on the cruise ship is called the Andes virus, which is the only known hantavirus strain to spread person to person. Transmission occurs through prolonged close contact, health officials say.
"The individual is currently at home, feeling well, and reporting no symptoms of hantavirus at this time," the health department said in a statement Monday afternoon.
Additional details about the person will not be released, officials said, due to medical privacy laws.
According to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), one other California resident that was exposed to the virus had returned to the state and is being monitored by public health officials.
Santa Clara County health officer Dr. Sarah Rudman reiterated that the risk of contracting the hantavirus was extremely low.
"I understand that the news of an exposed individual in Santa Clara County is causing stress and worry," Rudman said. "However, the safety protocols we have in place for the exposed individual, and our very close coordination with state, federal, and national disease experts responding to this outbreak, reassure me that we have a plan to respond to this event while protecting members of our community."
Experts, including the CDC and health officials from where the virus is more common, said people who are exposed to the Andes hantavirus are only infectious if they develop symptoms.
Santa Clara County health officials said they will continue to monitor the person for early signs and symptoms of the virus in accordance with the CDC's monitoring period of 42 days.
If the person comes down with symptoms, officials added that there was a "comprehensive care plan" to prevent exposure risk to first responders, healthcare providers, other patients and the public.
At least 10 cases have been reported and three people have died from a hantavirus outbreak connected with the MV Hondius as of Monday.
On Sunday, passengers began disembarking from the ship after it docked in Spain's Canary Islands, 17 of whom were Americans. Most of the U.S. passengers were sent to the National Quarantine Unit at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, while two others were taken to a biocontainment facility at Emory University in Atlanta.
In an update Monday afternoon, CDPH said two people who were evacuated to the facility in Nebraska are California residents.
