Hantavirus outbreak on cruise ship not ‘another COVID’, WHO says Three people have died and several others have fallen ill aboard the Dutch-flagged MV Hondius, prompting a major international public health response involving countries across Europe, Africa and Latin America. The first alert came from the United Kingdom, which notified WHO under International Health Regulations (IHR) of the outbreak after passengers aboard the vessel developed severe respiratory illness during the trip from Argentina to Cabo Verde. Briefing journalists in Geneva, WHO Director-General  Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said eight cases had been reported so far, including five laboratory-confirmed infections and three suspected cases linked to the rare Andes strain of hantavirus Low risk to humans Hantaviruses are zoonotic viruses carried by rodents and are usually transmitted to humans through contact with infected animals or their urine, saliva or droppings ( checkout WHO’s  hantavirus factsheet here ).…