Netherlands-based Oceanwide Expeditions said in a news release it was "managing a serious medical situation" on a polar expedition ship, the MV Hondius, which was off Cape Verde, an island nation in the Atlantic west of Africa.
The cruise departed from Argentina about three weeks ago with around 150 passengers and stopped in the Antarctic and other locations on its way to Cape Verde, according to media reports.
Hantavirus can be spread when droppings and urine of rodents become airborne, such as when people sweep out sheds where mice have been living. WHO said the virus can be spread between people in rare cases.
There are no specific drugs to treat hantavirus, so treatment focuses on supportive care, including putting patients on ventilators in severe cases.
