Health authorities linked the hantavirus outbreak aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship to a birdwatching visit near a landfill in Argentina,
May 12, 2026: A birdwatching expedition to a remote landfill near Ushuaia in Argentina has been linked to a deadly hantavirus outbreak connected to the cruise ship MV Hondius. Dutch ornithologist Leo Schilperoord, 70, identified as the suspected “patient zero,” and his wife Mirjam Schilperoord reportedly contracted the virus after visiting the landfill on March 27 while searching for the rare white-throated caracara bird, also known as Darwin’s caracara. Investigators believe the couple inhaled virus particles from rodent waste at the site, which was reportedly heavily contaminated and avoided by local residents.
Just days after the visit, the couple boarded the MV Hondius along with more than 100 passengers and crew members. Leo Schilperoord developed symptoms including fever, stomach pain and diarrhoea during the voyage and later died onboard. After accompanying her husband’s body during the return journey, Mirjam Schilperoord also fell critically ill and died while travelling back to the Netherlands through South Africa. Health officials later confirmed hantavirus infection in her case as well.
The World Health Organisation has so far confirmed eight hantavirus cases linked to the outbreak, while two additional cases are being treated as probable infections. Authorities from several countries have launched monitoring and tracing operations after passengers from 19 countries were evacuated from the ship in Spain’s Canary Islands. Despite global concern, WHO officials said the overall public risk remains low and stressed that the current outbreak is not comparable to the COVID-19 pandemic.