1st Local Hantavirus Case In New York In 9 Years Confirmed

New York health officials have confirmed the state's first locally acquired hantavirus case in nine years. This isn't linked to the cruise outbreak.

Three Kansas residents who were exposed to the Andes hantavirus are being monitored at the University of Kansas Hospital.

Health officials in Kansas say all three had contact with someone who had been on board the MV Hondius.

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In Nebraska, 16 Americans evacuated from that cruise ship remain under observation. Two more are in Atlanta.

Of those 18 Americans under observation, three are from New York State, including two from the Hudson Valley. An Orange County, New York resident has been posting about his experience in quarantine with daily videos.

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All are being monitored for the Andes hantavirus, which is the only strain of the hantavirus known to spread from person to person. While most hantaviruses require direct contact with rodents, this strain can spread through close, prolonged contact with an infected person.

Symptoms can develop anywhere from 4 to 42 days after exposure. In total, sixteen states are monitoring residents who were potentially exposed.

1 Suspected Hantavirus Case In New York Not Linked To Cruise Ship

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New York State health officials are currently watching one suspected case of hantavirus from a New Yorker who wasn't on the MV Hondius cruise ship. Public health officials in Ontario County, the Finger Lakes region, confirmed they are investigating a suspected case of locally acquired hantavirus in the town of Hopewell.

It's the first locally acquired hantavirus case in New York State since 2017. Over the past 30 years, only six total cases have ever been documented statewide.

Ontario County Public Health Director Kate Ott explicitly confirmed this case is entirely unrelated to the MV Hondius cruise ship outbreak or the international Andes virus strain.

Officials say the resident's case involves standard North American hantavirus strains, which are only contracted by inhaling airborne particles from the droppings, urine, or saliva of infected local rodents.

Health officials emphasize that there is no risk to the general public from this new case.