Cruise Ship Patients Released from Hospital to Finish Isolation at Home

Six passengers from the MV Hondius, the cruise ship at the center of a hantavirus outbreak, have been discharged from Arrowe Park Hospital in Wirral to complete their quarantine at home, health officials confirmed Thursday.

The group had been transported to the Merseyside hospital for specialist medical assessments after the ship reported multiple cases of the rare rodent-borne virus. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said each person was evaluated by public health and clinical teams, and after testing negative, they are now permitted to finish the 45-day isolation period in their own residences.

“Appropriate public health protections are in place at every stage of their journey,” a UKHSA spokesperson said, adding that health protection teams across the country will maintain daily contact with those released.

All six remain asymptomatic, the agency noted, praising the “incredible demonstration of international efforts” to control the outbreak.

Meanwhile, a medic on Ascension Island in the South Atlantic has developed symptoms but tested negative for hantavirus. Further tests are underway to determine if the illness is unrelated.

On Tuesday, UKHSA announced that 10 British nationals from the South Atlantic islands—residents of St Helena and Ascension—will be flown to the UK as a precaution to complete self-isolation. Professor Robin May, UKHSA’s chief scientific officer, said his teams are working with the Foreign Office and local leaders to repatriate them safely.

“Once again I must commend those who have cooperated so selflessly with the isolation arrangements at Arrowe Park,” May said. “We are pleased they will now begin to return home after a very unsettling period.”

To date, 11 hantavirus cases have been linked to the cruise, including three deaths. Nine cases are confirmed, with two more considered probable.