Four Australians stranded at sea as rat-borne virus breaks out on cruise ship, leaving three dead

Published: 23:42, 4 May 2026 | Updated: 23:55, 4 May 2026 Four Australians are stranded on a luxury cruise ship amid a suspected outbreak of the deadly rat-borne hantavirus after three people died on board. The Australians are among 149 people on board the MV Hondius, which remains moored off the coast of Cape Verde, West Africa, as local health authorities work to assess the situation. The ship, which was on a week-long cruise from Argentina to Antarctica, requested help from authorities on Sunday after a third person - a German national - died. A Dutch couple in their late 60s died last month.  Hantavirus is transmitted to humans through infected wild rodents, such as mice or rats, which shed the virus in their saliva, urine and droppings.  Infection can occur through a rodent bite, direct contact with rodents or their droppings, or by inhaling contaminated dust. There is no cure. Four Australians are stranded on a luxury cruise ship being held off West Africa (pictured) amid a suspected outbreak of the deadly hantavirus 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.