The World Health Organization said on Wednesday (May 6) it had not been notified of any changes to the Andes strain of hantavirus found on a cruise ship that would make it more transmissible.

"We haven't been notified of any changes, of any changes in the sequence itself, to indicate that," Maria Van Kerkhove, Director of Epidemic and Pandemic management at the World Health Organisation in Geneva, told Reuters.

Sequencing has been conducted on two of the eight individuals from the cruise ship - one is the patient in intensive care in South Africa, and the second is the patient in Zurich, Van Kerkhove said.

“This is really enough for us, at the moment, to understand that it's the Andes virus,” Van Kerkhove said.

The WHO believes the Andes strain may have been spread through close contact between individuals on the ship.

“In this case, the husband and the wife, our working hypothesis is that they were infected potentially before they got on board,” Van Kerkhove said.

The WHO said its working hypothesis is that one of them was infected and infected the other, however, they both could have been infected through contact with rodents.

“But we do know on board that there has been some close contact between individuals where we believe the virus was transmitted. So when we say close contact, we mean very close physical contact, whether it's sharing a bunk room or sharing a cabin, providing medical care,” Van Kerkhove said.

The WHO cautioned that its spread was different from COVID-19 and influenza, in that it appeared to be spread through close contact such as sneezing, coughing and kissing.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND (MAY 6, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

1. DIRECTOR OF EPIDEMIC AND PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS AND PREVENTION AT THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO), MARIA VAN KERKHOVE, ARRIVING FOR INTERVIEW

2. (SOUNDBITE) (English) DIRECTOR OF EPIDEMIC AND PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS AND PREVENTION AT THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO), MARIA VAN KERKHOVE, SAYING:

“No, I mean, I'm sure they will be looking at that, but as far as we have seen from the sequence, we haven't been notified of any changes in the sequence itself to indicate that.”

3. VAN KERKHOVE DURING INTERVIEW

4. (SOUNDBITE) (English) DIRECTOR OF EPIDEMIC AND PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS AND PREVENTION AT THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO), MARIA VAN KERKHOVE, SAYING:

“At the present time, we have eight suspected cases, of which three have died, three have been confirmed, and these cases are all associated with the ship. We have one patient that is currently in ICU in South Africa who's actually doing better. We have three people that have today been medically evacuated from the ship and are on their way to the Netherlands. And we have one recent case that has been identified here in Switzerland, associated with the ship, but getting off the ship in St. Helena. And the last case is a suspected case; it is an older woman who unfortunately passed away on board.”

5. VAN KERKHOVE DURING INTERVIEW

6. (SOUNDBITE) (English) DIRECTOR OF EPIDEMIC AND PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS AND PREVENTION AT THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO), MARIA VAN KERKHOVE, SAYING:

“So there's been sequencing done on two patients. We only have confirmation, lab confirmation from three of the eight individuals. So there are ongoing lab investigations. Only two have had sequencing done. This is really enough for us at the moment to, you know, understand that it's the Andes virus. I have to say that since the beginning, we've been assuming that it is the Andes virus, just given the path of the ship. Given that it started in Argentina and that it's been moving up the coast of Africa in the Atlantic. So it was an assumption that we had just based on, and as you know, hantaviruses are common in rodents and people can get infected with this, but there are many different types of hantaviruses. So that's why the sequencing is important.”

7. VAN KERKHOVE DURING INTERVIEW

8. (SOUNDBITE) (English) DIRECTOR OF EPIDEMIC AND PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS AND PREVENTION AT THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO), MARIA VAN KERKHOVE, SAYING:

“And because this is Andes, We know typically most people are infected through contact with rodents or their saliva or droppings, but this one particular virus has been associated with some limited human-to-human transmission among close contacts in past outbreaks. That's important for us to set forth the right public health measures and just to be very cautious with all the people who are involved.”

9. VAN KERKHOVE DURING INTERVIEW

10. (SOUNDBITE) (English) DIRECTOR OF EPIDEMIC AND PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS AND PREVENTION AT THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO), MARIA VAN KERKHOVE, SAYING:

“For example, in this case, the husband and the wife—our working hypothesis is that they were infected potentially before they got on board. All of this needs to be fully investigated. We don't have confirmation on this, but our working hypothesis is that it's possible one of them was infected and infected the other. They could have both been infected through contact with rodents. But we do know on board that there has been some close contact between individuals where we believe the virus was transmitted. So when we say close contact, we mean very close physical contact, whether it's sharing a bunk room or sharing a cabin, providing medical care; for example, very, very different from COVID and very different from influenza.”

11. VAN KERKHOVE DURING INTERVIEW

12. (SOUNDBITE) (English) DIRECTOR OF EPIDEMIC AND PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS AND PREVENTION AT THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO), MARIA VAN KERKHOVE, SAYING:

“The plan is for the boat, the ship, to move to the Canary Islands, should that change, we will let you know, but that's under active discussion. We're also working with the Spanish authorities who have experience in this, who have incredible capabilities, with support from WHO and others to make that plan, specifically what you're asking, what will happen when the boat docks, what will happen with each of the patients, how will they be identified as higher risk, lower risk, to exactly have that plan. I don't have the details of what is exactly going to happen because that's currently being discussed.”

13. VAN KERKHOVE DURING INTERVIEW

14. (SOUNDBITE) (English) DIRECTOR OF EPIDEMIC AND PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS AND PREVENTION AT THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO), MARIA VAN KERKHOVE, SAYING:

“There is guidance that's out there related to that. That really needs to be discussed on what needs to be done. There is no decision to say they have to be quarantined for 45 days. I'm sure if people on the boat are hearing this or seeing this, they would be concerned as well. But the public health professionals, what they're trying to do is to make sure that if any of them are sick, that they're followed up and monitored and that they receive early clinical care because clinical care saves lives, but also to prevent onward transmission. So what we are working on is the guidance of what to do to prevent onward spread. And then the policy decisions are up to the member states themselves. And we're working with them to support them on what works best in each context. There may be different plans for those that are on the boat versus those that got off on the islands at different time periods, but it's very much a work in progress.”

15. VARIOUS OF EXTERIORS OF WHO