At least five Americans who returned home from a hantavirus-infected cruise ship are being monitored for the potentially deadly disease.
The tourists from three different US states were aboard the MV Hondius when the sickness broke out last month.
Three passengers onboard the ship have since died, while five others were sickened after showing signs of hantavirus, a family of rare viruses spread by rodents.
But none of those being monitored in the United States have shown any symptoms of the illness, according to The New York Times.
The Georgia Department of Public Health said it is monitoring two residents who ‘are currently in good health and show no signs of infection.’
It added that it is following the recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The California Department of Public Health also said it was notified that residents had been onboard the ship, but officials would not specify how many residents it was monitoring.
‘There is no information that the California residents are ill or infected,’ Robert Barsanti, a spokesman for the department told the Times. ‘At this time, the risk to public health in California is low.’
Additionally, the Arizona Department of Health Services said it received notification that a resident was a passenger on the cruise, though a spokeswoman said the ‘individual is not symptomatic, and is being monitored.’
Health workers in protective gear evacuate patients from the MV Hondius into an ambulance at a Praia, Cape Verde, port on Wednesday
Five Americans are being monitored after they were identified as passengers on the ship
Two Texans and one Virginian are also being monitored for the deadly virus after they were identified as passengers aboard the MV Hondius when the outbreak started last month, but returned to the US before it was identified.
Both passengers from the Lone Star State have no symptoms and did not have contact with anyone unwell, the Texas Department of State Health Services said Thursday.
They have ‘agreed to monitor themselves for symptoms with daily temperature checks,’ according to a release.
The passengers will contact public health officials ‘at any sign of a possible illness,’ authorities added.
The Virginian passenger is also in good health with no sign of infection, according to local health officials.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
