Lab mystery deepens as hantavirus samples vanish ahead of MV Hondius outbreak

Two vials of hantavirus went missing from an Australian lab two years before the recent outbreak on the cruise ship MV Hondius.

Out of the 300 vials that went missing in 2024, two contained the hantavirus, which causes the condition that has left three dead in the last two weeks.

At the time, it was thought the disappearance happened when the vials were being transferred to a new freezer.

But an investigation found they were probably destroyed rather than stolen. The vials are not connected with the most recent outbreak.

The disease has made headlines in recent days after multiple passengers aboard the cruise ship contracted symptoms of the illness.

A husband and wife, both 69, had developed the rodent-borne virus and brought it aboard the ship after visiting the city of Ushuaia, Argentina.

The pair, from the Netherlands, are believed to have visited a landfill site during a birdwatching trip and may have been exposed to rodents carrying the deadly infection.

The husband died on April 11 after reporting flu-like symptoms, which he suffered for five days. His body was taken ashore at Saint Helena on April 24, where his wife also disembarked.

She then fell ill and died in Johannesburg on April 26. A German national also died on the ship on May 2.

A British crew member who was evacuated from the ship with symptoms of the virus has been named as Martin Anstree.

The 56-year-old is a former police officer turned wildlife photographer and was on board as an expert birdwatching guide.

He told Sky News from the hospital in the Netherlands where he is receiving treatment: ‘I’m doing OK. I’m not feeling too bad. There are still lots of tests to be done.

‘I have no idea how long I’ll be in the hospital for. I’m in isolation at the moment.’

His wife Nicola told the Telegraph it had been ‘a very traumatic few days’.

She added: ‘He’s relieved to be off the ship. He had it quite mild, then it got a bit more serious, and now he’s stable again.

‘The fear with this virus is it can deteriorate very quickly, so it’s been a bit up and down for him.

‘I don’t believe he’s in imminent danger now, but it was horrible.’