Maryland Monitors 2 Residents After Hantavirus Exposure

The Maryland Department of Health is monitoring two Maryland residents following a possible exposure to hantavirus connected to a passenger aboard the M/V Hondius cruise ship.

According to officials, the two residents were not passengers on the cruise ship. The possible exposure reportedly occurred during international air travel that briefly included a passenger infected with hantavirus. Health officials say they are taking precautionary measures out of an abundance of caution and emphasized that the current risk to the public remains very low.

The virus connected to the case is believed to be the Andes virus, a rare strain of hantavirus found in South America. While most hantaviruses are spread through contact with infected rodents, Andes virus is the only known hantavirus capable of person-to-person transmission. Health experts say that type of spread is rare and generally requires prolonged close contact with an infected person or their bodily fluids.

State health officials declined to release additional information about the Maryland residents involved in order to protect their privacy.

The Maryland Department of Health also noted that no hantavirus cases have been identified in Maryland since 2019, and no Andes virus infections have ever been reported in the state. Health experts say symptoms can appear anywhere from four to 42 days after exposure. Officials added that people without symptoms are not considered contagious.