One of four Canadians who returned to British Columbia from a cruise ship where there was a hantavirus outbreak received a “presumptive positive” test result for the virus, provincial health officials said Saturday, with confirmation expected shortly from a federal laboratory in Winnipeg. Dr. Bonnie Henry, British Columbia’s public health officer, said the result came back as Canadian officials continued to monitor those who arrived home after the outbreak on the MV Hondius.

Henry said the presumptive positive case involved a person who is one member of a couple in their 70s. She said the person began showing mild symptoms, including a fever and headache, two days ago, and both people in the couple are being treated in hospital in Victoria.

“The patient is stable, the symptoms remain mild at this point,” Henry said. “They are still in hospital, in isolation, being monitored and receiving care as needed.” Henry also described the other person in the couple as having “very minor symptoms” and said that tests for that second person were negative.

Henry said results from the National Microbiology Lab in Winnipeg to confirm the presumptive result are expected to come over the weekend. “Clearly this is not what we hoped for, but it is what we planned for,” Henry said.

The four Canadians returned to British Columbia on May 10, including the couple in their 70s from the Yukon, a person in their 70s from Vancouver Island, and a British Columbia resident in their 50s who lives abroad. Henry said all of the returnees were in isolation when the cases were being assessed.

In addressing public concern, Henry said the hantavirus is different from COVID-19 and is not considered to have “pandemic potential.” She said British Columbia has maintained infection-control precautions since the patients arrived in the province and that officials are prepared to respond. “I want to reassure everybody in (British Columbia) that for most of us the situation has not changed,” Henry said. “We’ve had infection control precautions in place from the moment these people arrived in British Columbia.” She added, “I’m confident there’s no additional risk. We are well prepared to respond carefully and appropriately to keep everyone safe.”

Provincial officials said the outbreak on the MV Hondius has resulted in deaths and multiple confirmed infections. Henry said three people have died since the outbreak began, and she said that if the presumptive positive test is confirmed, the British Columbia patient would be the 10th person from the ship to test positive. She said the outbreak has reached 12 cases, with nine confirmed, and that among those who died are a Dutch couple that officials believe were the first exposed while visiting South America.

sources:

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