Cruise

Hantavirus, the US passenger who became an in-flight doctor

His name is Stephen Kornfeld, he is a doctor from Oregon. He was expecting a holiday but found himself managing a health emergency

by Giulia Riva

8 May 2026

Il dottor Stephen Kornfeld, a bordo della nave da crociera Hondius, in videocollegamento con la Cnn CNN

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

He was looking forward to the holiday of a lifetime: weeks of rest on the Atlantic Ocean - between expanses of ice and remote islands - surrounded by whales, dolphins and penguins.

But going on holiday is not enough to stop being a doctor. So Doctor Stephen Kornfeld, from Oregon, who boarded the ship Hondius in Argentina at the beginning of April, when a deadly outbreak of hantavirus began to spread, which also affected the liner's medical director, took care of the passengers.

"I asked if I could help out and was told thatthe ship's doctor had also fallen ill, so I found myself in the role of ship's doctor," he tells CNN from the virus-stricken vessel, which is currently sailing to Tenerife - in the Canary Islands - a Spanish archipelago off the south-western coast of Morocco.

The approximately 146 passengers and crew members are still on board: they have spent several days at anchor near Praia, Cape Verde - off the coast of West Africa - and are expected to arrive in Tenerife on Sunday, where they will disembark before returning to their respective countries.

"Within 12 to 24 hours it became clear that several passengers were deteriorating rapidly," Kornfeld explains, "the wife of one of the deceased passengers showed non-specific symptoms such as confusion and severe weakness": she was evacuated and subsequently died in hospital in Johannesburg. "Other patients, including the ship's doctor, presented typical viral symptoms such as fever, fatigue, gastrointestinal complaints and breathing difficulties," he continued. The ship's doctor, who was also evacuated, is still in intensive care but is improving.

Hantavirus, passeggero sbarcato dalla nave: pagati 10mila $, un solo medico a bordo non basta

The outbreak has triggered an extensive global contact tracing effort as health authorities work to identify people who may have been exposed to the rare rodent-borne virus, which can cause severe respiratory failure. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has assured that it does not foresee an outbreak comparable to Covid, stressing that there is no evidence of a risk of widespread human-to-human transmission.

KLM flight attendant negative for hantavirus test

The cases of hantavirus infection linked to the Hondius ship confirmed by the WHO at the moment are five. Three people have died so far, including an elderly Dutch couple (he 70, she 69) who allegedly contracted the virus in Argentina before embarking. A KLM flight attendant - who came into contact with the Dutch woman shortly before her death (she was later disembarked in South Africa due to her critical health condition) - had mild symptoms: she was admitted to hospital in Amsterdam, tested for the virus, and tested negative.

Contagio da Hantavirus, Pregliasco: pochissimi casi da umano a umano

Other passengers were evacuated to the Netherlands and Switzerland for treatment. The outbreak has been linked to the Andean strain of hantavirus, which is rare but potentially serious and, in some cases, transmissible between humans. The early departure of some 30 passengers complicates the containment of the virus.

Early treatment, isolation and intensive care

"With this virus, the situation can go from serious to critical in a very short time," Kornfeld warned. That is why he was very worried about the sick people on the ship, he explained, because on board they are not equipped for intensive care. Now that the critically ill patients have disembarked, however, "they can receive wonderful care in hospital", so he is confident of their recovery.

Health authorities in various countries are monitoring the passengers, considering that the incubation period can be up to six weeks. "After the first symptoms, however, the other passengers have not come into contact with the sick people," Kornfeld points out, "so they have basically been in quarantine for a few weeks now" and disembarkation should not prove too complicated for them once they arrive in port. What remains to be seen, however, is what will become of him, who came into direct contact with the sick to care for them.