New Jersey health officials announced Friday they are monitoring two residents who may have been exposed to hantavirus from a person linked to an outbreak on the cruise ship MV Hondius. The residents, who were not passengers on the ship, encountered the individual during international air travel abroad, according to the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH). Both remain symptom-free, and officials emphasized the risk to the general public remains very low.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notified NJDOH of the potential exposure. The department is coordinating with local health officials to track the individuals as a precaution. No identifying details, such as their locations within the state, have been released to protect patient privacy. New Jersey has no history of confirmed hantavirus cases.

The monitoring comes amid a rare cluster of hantavirus infections aboard the Dutch expedition ship MV Hondius, which departed Ushuaia, Argentina, on April 1, 2026, with about 150 passengers and 72 crew members from 23 nationalities. The outbreak involves the Andes virus strain, unique among hantaviruses for its documented capacity for limited person-to-person transmission through close, prolonged contact. Typically spread via inhalation of aerosols from infected rodent droppings, urine, or saliva, the virus causes hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, which can progress rapidly to respiratory failure and death.

Three passengers have died: a 70-year-old Dutch man, identified as the index case, on April 11 aboard the ship; his 69-year-old wife on April 26 in Johannesburg, South Africa, after disembarking in Saint Helena; and a German woman on May 2 aboard the vessel. As of May 8, there are five confirmed cases and nine suspected ones, with illness onset between April 6 and 28. Authorities suspect the index case contracted the virus during a recent road trip and bird-watching in Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay.

The ship, now en route from Cape Verde to Tenerife in Spain's Canary Islands, has seen evacuations of symptomatic patients to the Netherlands and other locations. Three epidemiologists boarded on May 6 to investigate transmission. Passengers have been advised to limit close contact, use hand sanitizer, and monitor for symptoms like fever, headache, and shortness of breath, which have an incubation period of four to 42 days.

Health authorities worldwide are tracing contacts from disembarkations at stops including Tristan da Cunha and Saint Helena. Twelve countries, including the U.S., are monitoring returned passengers and crew. In the U.S., five states besides New Jersey, Georgia, Texas, Virginia, Arizona, and California are tracking individuals, none of whom show symptoms. The CDC has classified the event as a Level 3 emergency response, the lowest tier.

The World Health Organization assesses the global risk as low, stressing that this is not the start of an epidemic or pandemic. No specific treatment exists; care is supportive, including oxygen and mechanical ventilation. NJDOH will provide updates as the situation evolves.