Aussie passenger on hantavirus-hit cruise ship returns home - after leaving vessel as the outbreak began

By KYLIE STEVENS, SENIOR BREAKING NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 01:11, 7 May 2026 | Updated: 01:14, 7 May 2026 An Australian who was onboard on a luxury cruise ship during a suspected outbreak of the deadly rat-borne hantavirus has since returned home.  At least three other Australians are among 149 passengers stranded onboard the MV Hondius, which remains moored off the coast of Cape Verde, West Africa. The ship, which had been on a cruise from Argentina to Antarctica, requested help from authorities on Sunday following the death of a third passenger. An Australian passenger was among 23 who disembarked the ship at St Helena on April 21 after the first death was recorded. One of those who disembarked has since tested positive to the virus and is recovering in hospital in Switzerland, according to a Spanish passenger still stranded onboard.  'Until three days ago, no one had contacted them,' they told Spanish newspaper El Pais. 'The Australian went back to Australia, the one from Taiwan to Taiwan, the Americans to all corners of North America. The Englishman to England, the Dutch to their homes.' No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.