A medic who developed hantavirus symptoms on a remote British overseas territory is being cared for in a London hospital, as nine people connected to the MV Hondius cruise ship outbreak arrive in the UK.
The group of Britons from the British South Atlantic territories of St Helena and Ascension Island, who may have been exposed to hantavirus but do not have symptoms, arrived in the UK on Sunday evening, authorities have said.
A medic from Ascension Island was brought to the UK for a “specialist assessment” after developing symptoms, described as a “highly precautionary measure” by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).
He is being treated at the High Consequence Infectious Diseases unit in Guy’s and St Thomas’s NHS Foundation Trust, the UKHSA added.
“As there is no specialist infectious diseases unit on Ascension Island,” the agency said in an update on Saturday.
“The decision was made to bring them to the UK to ensure they receive the best possible support at a HCID unit should they become unwell. The individual will undergo further testing and assessment at the unit.”
The group will complete their self-isolation in the UK supported by the NHS’s High Consequence Infectious Diseases network they become unwell, the UKHSA said.
They will be taken to Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral, the same facility that housed passengers from the MV Hondius.
The MV Hondius was scheduled to arrive in Rotterdam, in the Netherlands, on Monday morning, having spent the past six days sailing from the Canary Islands, where passengers were escorted off in full protective gear and flown to quarantine in over 20 countries, including the UK.
Dr Meera Chand, deputy director at the UKHSA, said: “UKHSA will continue to work with our partners locally, nationally and internationally to ensure everyone has the necessary support in place.
“We are undertaking safe repatriation of those affected by the outbreak where appropriate, incorporating medical checks and support, with the latest flight arriving tonight.
“We are committed to keeping these passengers and the wider population safe and will remain in close contact with them as they complete their self-isolation period.”
On Saturday, one person left Arrowe Park Hospital to complete their 45-day isolation period at home, after a clinical and public health assessment deemed it safe for them to do so, the UKHSA said.
A further six people returned home from the hospital to continue their self-isolation on Thursday last week. Officials say both those isolating at home and those who remain in hospital are being closely monitored,
The UKHSA said on Friday evening that three team members of the UK Public Health Rapid Support Team (UK-PHRST) had been sent to the UK overseas territories in the South Atlantic in response to a request for support from the island’s government.
The deployed team includes two microbiologists, Clara Milroy and Kimberley Steeds, who will support with PCR testing for hantavirus as well as supporting testing to exclude other conditions, the UKHSA said on its website.
They are joined by infection prevention and control expert Anthony Twyman, who will support Jamestown General Hospital to prepare and respond to any potential cases through assessments and training.
The trio will be on the island for the next eight weeks, according to the agency.
The outbreak on the cruise ship has led to at least 11 reported cases among passengers, including three deaths.
Among those who died were a Dutch couple, who health officials believe were the first exposed to the virus while visiting South America.
Public Health Scotland warned on Thursday that a small number of people in Scotland have potentially had contact with the virus and that it was working to get in touch with “a small number of individuals” who could be affected.
After the ship docks in Rotterdam, crew members who are unable to return home will be quarantined in the Netherlands, the Dutch health ministry said last week.
Around two dozen passengers and crew are already in quarantine in the Netherlands, after arriving in the country on a series of flights over the previous two weeks.
After everyone on board has disembarked, the ship will be decontaminated based on Dutch public health guidelines.
“Personal protective measures are being taken to ensure that the cleaners do not need to quarantine after the cleaning,” the health ministry said in a letter to the Dutch parliament last week.
Public health officials will inspect the vessel before it is allowed to sail again. The hantavirus outbreak aboard the MV Hondius is the first known case on a cruise ship.
The Dutch company that owns the cruise ship said it does not foresee any changes to its operations. It has an Arctic cruise setting sail from Keflavik, Iceland, on May 29.
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