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Hantavirus Has Sparked Fears Of COVID-Like Shutdown

Hantavirus Covid Covid-19
By: Houston Williams Updated Category: Rumors
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Three deaths aboard a cruise ship has people scared, but experts say the hantavirus outbreak is unlikely to become another COVID pandemic.

Hantavirus has suddenly become the latest scary word dominating headlines after three people died aboard the expedition cruise ship MV Hondius. People are scared, worried and ready to start hoarding water and toilet paper. There is a but…but infectious disease experts are urging the public not to panic or start comparing this outbreak to COVID-19.

The cruise vessel, which traveled from southern Argentina through Antarctica and isolated islands in the South Atlantic, is now under intense international scrutiny after at least eight suspected or confirmed hantavirus cases emerged among roughly 150 passengers and crew.

Three people have died. This has fueled fears. People are scared that we are headed for another disaster. Remember Covid was exacerbated from none other than The Don. What is the probability that once president has two pandemics? Well, pumps the brakes for a second.

Health officials believe the infections involves the Andes strain of hantavirus, a rare variant found mostly in Argentina and Chile. Unlike most hantavirus strains, the Andes version can spread from person to person under limited circumstances. Still, experts say the virus behaves nothing like COVID-19 and lacks the kind of easy airborne transmission that creates worldwide pandemics.

“This is not the next pandemic,” experts are saying. Hantavirus simply does not spread efficiently enough to trigger a global crisis, they say. Do you feel comfortable with this?

The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified the overall public health risk as low. Investigators are now trying to determine whether passengers were exposed during excursions on remote islands or whether a small amount of onboard transmission occurred afterward.

Officials noted that several passengers likely traveled through endemic regions of Argentina before boarding the ship. WHO epidemiologist Maria Van Kerkhove suggested some infections may have happened before the cruise even began.

Unlike COVID-19, hantavirus is typically contracted through exposure to rodent urine, droppings, or saliva, especially when contaminated particles become airborne and inhaled. Human transmission involving the Andes strain has historically required prolonged close contact between family members, romantic partners, or caregivers.

Passengers remaining aboard the ship are currently isolated while authorities conduct testing, contact tracing, and decontamination procedures. Health agencies in several countries, including the United States, are also monitoring travelers who already left the vessel. Reports indicate individuals in California, Arizona, and Georgia are under observation, although no additional illnesses have been confirmed.

Just in case you are near rodents and other weird things, there are some nuggets of info you need to know.

Symptoms often begin with fever, chills, fatigue, muscle aches, and stomach problems before progressing into dangerous respiratory complications. Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome carries a mortality rate estimated between 30% and 40%, making it serious even if experts believe it remains containable.

“I would be absolutely shocked if that happened,” Johns Hopkins professor Kari Moore Debbink said regarding fears of another pandemic. “This is not a COVID situation.”

Now, here are a few posts from social media, because we need to recognize the paranoia in the room.