The British holidaymaker, who is in his 60s, had boarded the same flight from Saint Helena to Johannesburg as MV Hondius passenger Mirjam Schilperoord, who died from hantavirus
Authorities took action after locating the British man in Milan, Italy(Image: Dan Rowlands / SWNS.com)
A British man who was on board a plane with a woman who went on to die after contracting hantavirus was detained at an Italian bar as authorities’ battle to contain the deadly outbreak.
Last night, the holidaymaker and his companion – who was not on the flight – were apprehended in Milan before being taken to Sacco Hospital. The pair must remain in quarantine until June 6, after being forced into a 42-day isolation period. They were told they must segregate despite showing no symptoms before testing negative for the disease.
The British citizen, understood to be in his 60s, was on the same Airlink flight as tragic Mirjam Schilperoord, 69, when they travelled from Saint Helena to Johannesburg. She was the wife of patient zero Leo Schilperoord, 70, who boarded the boat with her after making a fateful visit to the rubbish tip in Argentina. He was the first passenger to lose his life to the virus while on board the vessel.
The tourist boarded the plane with one of the victims of the deadly disease (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
READ MORE: WHO chief says hantavirus ‘will spread’ as Brits flown 5,000 miles to isolateREAD MORE: Hantavirus symptoms monitored in two NOT on board cruise ship after being on plane with infected passenger
Hantavirus has triggered an international emergency response from global health authorities around the world after an outbreak of the rat-borne disease was confirmed on board the Dutch cruise ship last month. So far, 11 cruise passengers have contracted with the disease, with three deaths in total.
The couple, from Haulerwijk, a small village in the Netherlands, were named in obituaries published in their local monthly village magazine. Prior to boarding the MV Hondius, Leo and Mirjam had been on a five-month trip across South America. On March 27, they visited a landfill site four miles outside the city of Ushuaia.
Argentinian authorities believe the Dutch couple contracted the fAndes strain of the hantavirus at the site, likely through exposure to infected rodents living in the rubbish.
Four days later, on April 1, the couple set sail on the MV Hondius from Ushuaia, alongside 112 other passengers. By April 6, Leo reported suffering from a fever, headache, stomach pain and diarrhoea.
Hantavirus may have literally jumped ship as WHO boss warns infection numbers will rise(Image: RAMON DE LA ROCHA/EPA/Shutterstock)
He passed away on the ship five days later, with his body remaining on board until 24th April when the ship docked in St Helena.
The head of the World Health Organisation has admitted that hantavirus will continue to spread, although there have been no signs of a mass public outbreak of the rat-borne disease as of yet.
WHO chief, Dr Tedros, told reporters at a Madrid press conference on Tuesday: “At the moment, there is no sign that we are seeing the start of a larger outbreak, but of course the situation could change and, given the long incubation period of the virus, it’s possible we might see more cases in the coming weeks.”
He added that more cases were likely to surface in the coming weeks due to the high level of interaction between passengers aboard the MV Hondius, as well as the long incubation timeframe of the virus.
Mirjam travelled with his body to South Africa but she also started to become unwell. Her health subsequently worsened as she got ready to catch a KLM flight from Johannesburg to Amsterdam.
She briefly got on board but was denied clearance to travel and was instead rushed to hospital in South Africa where she passed away a day later on April 26. A third person from the ship, a German passenger, has also died.