Two Texas residents monitored for possible hantavirus exposure after traveling aboard an Antarctic cruise ship completed their observation period without developing symptoms.
According to a June 6 announcement from the Texas Department of State Health Services, both individuals have reached 42 days since their last possible exposure, the longest known incubation window for the disease.
The travelers were passengers on the MV Hondius, an expedition vessel that experienced an outbreak of the rare Andes strain of hantavirus while traveling in the Atlantic Ocean. Unlike most hantavirus strains that spread from rodents to humans, the Andes variant can be transmitted directly between people through close, prolonged contact.
The Texas passengers had gotten off the ship and returned home before the outbreak was officially identified by health officials.
While isolating at home, the individuals received twice-daily, in-person evaluations from public health workers. DSHS said that neither person showed signs of infection and both have been cleared of all public health recommendations.