‘Oh, gosh’: Inside the race to test for cruise ship hantavirus

Image: An enhanced microscopic image of the Hantavirus. © CDC. Article by France 24 – May 6, 2026.

Paris (France) (AFP) – It was the start of a long weekend in South Africa on Friday when Lucille Blumberg received an email from a fellow infectious disease specialist about an unknown illness on a cruise ship.

She would go on to play an instrumental role in getting samples from people who had been on the ship tested for hantavirus, which revealed the rare illness was behind a deadly outbreak that has sparked an international health scare. […]

Click here to view original web page at www.france24.com

Related articles:

Hantavirus outbreak: Another passenger contracts disease – United Nations

Hantavirus cluster linked to cruise ship travel, Multi-country – World Health Organization

What to know about hantavirus, the illness linked to a cruise ship outbreak – AP News

Hantavirus cruise ship heads for Spain’s Canary Islands as officials race to trace victims’ contacts – CNN

The Morbid Reason Hantavirus Is Unlikely to Be Next Pandemic – Newsweek