24 DAILY NEWS – A Manhattan resident who was aboard the MV Hondius, the cruise ship linked to a hantavirus outbreak, traveled extensively after disembarking without any warning from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to New York health officials regarding her potential exposure to the virus, as reported by city and state officials.
The 75-year-old traveler, a dual citizen of New Zealand and the United States with homes in Manhattan and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was one of 30 passengers who left the ship while it was docked at Saint Helena island in late April. One passenger had already died from a severe strain of hantavirus, with two more fatalities occurring shortly thereafter—one on board and another in a Johannesburg hospital. By the time the ship attracted international media attention, the woman was already traveling on an extensive global itinerary.
Although the CDC notified health officials in several states about other Americans who might have been exposed, it failed to inform authorities in New York about her.
