A deadly hantavirus outbreak aboard the luxury cruise ship MV Hondius has triggered an international health response, with authorities tracing passengers across multiple countries after three deaths and several confirmed infections linked to the vessel. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said the outbreak is not comparable to Covid-19 and the broader public health risk remains low. At least 29 passengers from 12 countries disembarked from the Dutch-operated vessel on April 24 at the island of Saint Helena before isolation measures were put in place, triggering an international contact-tracing effort. So far, there have been five confirmed cases. WHO officials warned that more cases could still emerge because the Andes strain of hantavirus has an incubation period of up to six weeks. In a press briefing, Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO director of epidemic and pandemic management said, “This is not coronavirus , this is a very different virus.…