Couple Exposed To Hantavirus Hospitalized In Atlanta

ATLANTA, GA — A couple has been brought to Emory University Hospital after at least one of the two people exhibited symptoms of hantavirus, a deadly illness that has killed at least three people aboard a cruise ship, Nebraskan health officials said at a news conference Monday.

WAGA-TV reported seeing the pair being helped from the airplane to ambulances after their aircraft landed around 9 a.m. Monday at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The plane reportedly departed Omaha, Nebraska.

CNN reported 17 American passengers aboard the MV Hondius arrived in Omaha for evaluation after the hantavirus outbreak on the Dutch cruise ship.

Due to the couple's "situation" aboard the cruise ship, they were taken to Emory University Hospital together, said John Knox, a principal deputy assistant secretary for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response.

Video from WXIA-TV, shortly before 11 a.m., appeared to show two people in quarantine gear separately heading into Emory.

Knox said the couple will be taken to the hospital's bio-containment unit, which also acts as a quarantine unit.

On Thursday, Georgia health officials said they were monitoring two people who were aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship when hantavirus began to spread among passengers.

The two monitored have not been confirmed to have any relation to the two who arrived Monday in Atlanta, and their updated statuses were not immediately known.

However, they were "in good health and (showed) no signs of infection" as of Thursday, the Georgia Department of Public Health told Patch.

The hantavirus outbreak on the MV Hondius has killed three people, the World Health Organization reported Friday. Thought eight total cases have been reported, WHO said laboratory results have confirmed six hantavirus infections - all identified as Andes virus.

"Through the International Health Regulations (2005) channel, National IHR Focal Points have all been informed and are supporting international contact tracing. WHO assesses the risk to the global population posed by this event as low and will continue to monitor the epidemiological situation and update the risk assessment. The risk for passengers and crew on the ship is considered moderate," WHO stated Friday.

RELATED: 2 GA Residents Monitored For Hantavirus After Deadly Cruise Ship Outbreak

What Happened?

The MV Hondius, owned and operated by Oceanwide Expeditions, set sail from Argentina and headed for Antarctica and South Atlantic islands. It carried 88 passengers and 59 crew members from 23 countries, WHO reported.

The outbreak was linked to an Argentinian birdwatching excursion and potential "exposure to infected rodent droppings," WAGA-TV reported.

Hondius, the first-registered Polar Class 6 ship, departed from Cape Verde, West Africa and was en route to the Spanish Canary Islands on Wednesday.

On Sunday, this ship ventured to Granadilla, Tenerife (part of the Spanish Canary Islands), where disembarkment began, Oceanwide Expeditions stated.

All passengers and crew members were being left off the ship and taken to waiting aircraft before being transported for quarantine.

The cruise line initially became aware of a medical situation after a passenger died on April 11 while aboard the ship. With crew members unable to determine a cause of death, the passenger (accompanied by his wife) was disembarked on April 24 in St. Helena.

Three days later, his wife became ill and died, Oceanwide Expeditions reported. They were Dutch nationals.

As the days went on, the cruise line said a third person died and others fell ill. Hantavirus, which is primarily spread by rodents, was detected in a critically ill patient, Oceanwide Expeditions reported.

WHO became notified of the deadly outbreak on Saturday. That same day, a lab test in South Africa confirmed a critically ill person in intensive care had contracted hantavirus, the organization reported.

Onset symptoms exhibited during the outbreak have included fever, gastrointestinal symptoms, rapid progression to pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome and shock, WHO reported.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, other symptoms can include breathing difficulties, fatigue, headaches, dizziness and chills.

In addition to rodents, WHO stated hantavirus can also be contracted through urine, saliva and feces.

A specific treatment has not yet been developed for the virus, and the CDC suggested anyone who contracts the virus to rest, rehydrate and treat symptoms.