The cruise ship Hondius continues to make headlines, and updates on the situation emerge daily. Amid fears of contagion and memories of a recent pandemic, the public is raising questions that might not have arisen otherwise. Hantavirus is a disease transmitted through rodents, prompting many to wonder what would happen if rodents were present on board the ship. It has already been confirmed that there are no rodents on the cruise, but how remote is the possibility that, if there were, they could reach land and infect the population?
After the ship arrived in the Canary Islands, doubts among the public began to surface. One of the most concerning possibilities was whether any infected rodents were on board. This was one of the first points examined and investigated.
According to RTVE, expert and Professor of Microbiology at the Autonomous University of Madrid, José Antonio López Guerrero, stated that “it has been confirmed that there are no rodents on that ship.” The specialist noted that the rodent considered the primary transmitter of the ship’s variant is a very specific type of mouse that would have had to swim from Argentina to the cruise ship, and then from the ship to Spanish shores. This process, according to experts, is highly unlikely.
Moreover, it is important to understand that the ship is of high standard and meets certain health safety requirements, making it difficult for rodents such as infected mice to be present. On the other hand, although rodents, particularly mice, can swim and even dive, there is little chance they could climb aboard, scale ropes, or enter the vessel.
Was the outbreak on the ship?
Aside from the presence or absence of rodents on board, it is also crucial to understand whether the infection occurred on the ship. In this specific case, infections occurred between April 6 and April 28, but it is unknown where they took place.
The main hypothesis among experts is that the infections occurred off the ship. It is believed it may have happened during an observation visit to an area where this rodent is prevalent. Upon returning to the ship, they may have unknowingly carried the disease aboard.