00:00There's been a cruise ship outbreak of Hantavirus leaving three dead and more unwell. I'm a doctor,
00:05let's look at the facts. The cruise ship called MV Hondas left southern Argentina on the 20th
00:10of March and is now stationed outside of Cape Verde but without permission for its passengers
00:16to disembark to be able to protect the local island population. Virus in question, Hantavirus
00:21is usually contained in infected rodent feces, urine or saliva which can become aerosolized,
00:28meaning that someone can breathe it in and then develop flu-like symptoms initially usually one
00:34to eight weeks after explosion and that can go on to develop a serious lung or kidney infection
00:40causing organ failure. Now the exact cause of this specific outbreak is still under investigation
00:45and the isolation procedures are really a precaution as human to human transmission of
00:50Hantavirus is uncommon although it has been described with a specific strain called the Andes virus.
00:57There is no known cure for Hantavirus infections and there are still 147 passengers and crew
01:03on board.
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