British man hunted down in Italian bar and detained over hantavirus fears

A British holidaymaker who was on the same plane as a woman who died after contracting hantavirus has been quarantined after being tracked down to a bar in Milan.

The man, who is in his 60s, had been on the same flight from Saint Helena to Johannesburg on 24 April as a woman who disembarked the MV Hondius cruise ship where the outbreak began, and later passed away.

The woman in question is one half of the Dutch couple who contracted the virus and died first, who authorities believe are likely to be ‘patient zero,’ as per the BBC, after they visited a landfill on a remote Argentinian island.

The unnamed British man who was found in Milan was with a travelling companion, both of whom were detained in Milan before being taken to Sacco Hospital.

The duo, who were reportedly both not showing symptoms, as per Metro, were instructed to remain in quarantine to complete a 42-day isolation period.

A British man believed to be at risk of hantavirus has been tracked down and forced into isolation (Getty Stock Image)

The person he was traveling with is also isolating as a precautionary measure.

A spokesman reportedly told The Sun: “He’s negative. Everyone who has had contact with him is not at risk of contagion.”

Guido Bertolaso, Lombardy’s Regional Welfare Councillor, explained: “He remains in isolation because the risk of developing the disease lasts 42 days.”

It came as a result of the British authorities flagging the possible infection as world officials continue to work together to monitor the outbreak.

The World Health Organisation has outlined that, as of Wednesday (13 May), a total of 11 cases, including three deaths, have been reported.

Eight cases were laboratory-confirmed for Andes virus (ANDV) infection, two are probable, and one case remains inconclusive and is undergoing further testing.

Hantavirus is primarily spread to humans through contact with infected rodents, but the Andes strain can pass person to person (Getty Stock Image)

Since 8 May, two additional confirmed cases were reported from France and Spain, including a French woman who’s battling the virus who travelled on the MV Hondius cruise and is now critically ill and relying on an artificial lung.

On Sunday (10 May) the remaining passengers and crew members were evacuated from the cruise ship in Tenerife and repatriated to their home countries in controlled, isolated conditions.

The French woman, whose identity has not been made public, was flown to a hospital in Paris and is now on a life-support device that pumps blood through an artificial lung, providing it with oxygen and returning it to the body, as reported by France24.

Issuing an update on the case, Dr. Xavier Lescure, an infectious disease specialist at Bichat Hospital, told AP News that the passenger has a severe form of the disease that has caused life-threatening lung and heart problems.

Currently, though, no cases of hantavirus have been confirmed in people who were not on board the cruise, so there is no evidence that the virus has spread beyond the confines of the ship.

The symptoms of hantavirus

Hantavirus can cause two life-threatening syndromes, according to the WHO: hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS).

The early symptoms of HPS, which attacks the lungs, start one to eight weeks after infection, and include:

• Fatigue
• Fever
• Muscles aches
• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Chills
• Nausea and vomiting
• Diarrhoea

Later symptoms include:

• Coughing
• Shortness of breath
• Tightness in the chest

Early symptoms of HFRS, which affects the kidneys, start one to two weeks after infection, and include:

• Intense headaches
• Back pain
• Abdominal pain
• Fever/chills
• Nausea
• Blurred vision

Later symptoms include:

• Low blood pressure
• Internal bleeding
• Acute kidney failure