Vancouver, May 17 (IANS). Health officials in the Canadian province of British Columbia have reported initial confirmation of hantavirus infection in a Canadian passenger who was on board a cruise ship. At present that person is being treated in isolation.
Provincial health officer Bonnie Henry said the patient began showing mild symptoms two days ago. These included fever and headache. After this he was admitted to the local hospital. According to the report of Xinhua News Agency, his investigation report on Friday revealed the possibility of Hantavirus infection. However, the final confirmation will come only after the microbiology lab report comes.
The patient is among 10 Canadians who have been kept in isolation due to the infection spread on a cruise ship. Four of these people are under observation in British Columbia, while the remaining six are kept in isolation in Alberta, Ontario and Quebec. This person has been found infected among the four people isolated in British Columbia, while the report of his partner has come negative.
Health officer Bonnie Henry assured people that none of the people in isolation have had contact with the general public. Health workers wore full safety kits while transporting and treating patients. He also said that this virus is not likely to become an epidemic, so people do not need to panic.
The infection spread on a cruise ship named MV Hondius. So far three people associated with this ship have died. According to experts, it may take one to eight weeks for symptoms of Hantavirus to appear.
Meanwhile, the Netherlands government has said that the infected cruise ship MV Hondius can reach Rotterdam port next Monday. Most of the ship’s crew members will be kept in quarantine there for six weeks.
The Netherlands government said in a letter to parliament that Rotterdam had been selected as a special port for the management of ship-borne infectious diseases. The letter is signed by Health Minister Sophie Hermans and Foreign Minister Tom Berndtsen.
According to Oceanwide Expeditions, the Dutch company running the ship, a total of 27 people are currently on the ship. These include 25 crew members and two medical staff. These people include 17 Filipinos, four Dutch, four Ukrainian, one Russian and one Polish national.
The government said some crew members would remain in quarantine upon reaching their homes, while those who could not immediately return to their countries would be kept in special quarantine centres.
Regarding the 17 Filipino crew members on board, RIVM, the Netherlands’ national public health institute, has advised that they remain in quarantine in the Netherlands for a full six weeks.
–IANS
AS/