US Monitoring Hantavirus Cases Closely, WHO Assesses Public Health Risk as Low

US President Donald Trump said on Friday that his administration is closely monitoring Hantavirus cases, stressing that the situation remains under control and is different from the COVID-19 pandemic. Trump stated that officials are studying the virus carefully and emphasized that it is not easily transferable.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has confirmed five instances of Hantavirus linked to fatalities on a cruise vessel currently navigating the Atlantic Ocean, with three further individuals suspected of carrying the Andes strain of the virus.

The WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus revealed that the United Kingdom had alerted the agency to a cluster of passengers suffering from acute respiratory distress aboard the Dutch-flagged ship, the Hondius, which is currently en route from Cape Verde to Tenerife, Spain.

The WHO assesses the public health risk as low, but warns that more cases may be reported due to the incubation period of the virus, which can be up to six weeks. The WHO has issued notifications to 12 countries whose citizens disembarked at Saint Helena, and Argentine authorities are tracing the couple's itinerary.

The immediate next steps include the distribution of 2,500 diagnostic kits to laboratories across five different nations, and the WHO will continue to monitor the situation closely. The US administration will also continue to study the virus and provide updates on the situation.