The recent hantavirus outbreak recorded aboard the cruise ship MV Hondius has had the Dutch ornithologists Leo Schilperoord and Mirjam Schilperoord-Huisman as its tragic protagonists, with them being identified as the first patients in the health episode that has affected passengers and crew members of different nationalities, leaving at least three dead.
The main hypothesis is that Leo, 69, contracted the virus in Argentina during a birdwatching walk at the municipal dump in Ushuaia.
He began to show symptoms consistent with hantavirus shortly after setting sail from Ushuaia on April 1, including fever, headache, and gastrointestinal disorders.
On April 11, the ornithologist suffered severe respiratory problems and died that same day aboard the ship, without the diagnosis being confirmed through laboratory tests. His body remained on the cruise ship for almost two weeks until its authorized disembarkation on April 24 on the British island of Saint Helena.
