Hantavirus Scare: Four People Identified for Contact Tracing in Western Cape

• The National Health Department says test results are still pending for a man in Cape Town who is showing symptoms of hantavirus and has been sent for testing
• In the Western Cape, four people have been identified for contact tracing, while health officials continue monitoring possible exposure
• Authorities say 62 people are being traced globally as investigations continue into suspected hantavirus cases

SOUTH AFRICA -The National Health Department says four people have been identified for monitoring for possible hantavirus exposure in the Western Cape. Laboratory test results are still pending for one of four people being monitored in Cape Town for possible exposure to the virus

Department of Health gives an update on the suspected cases

According to SABC News, department spokesperson Foster Mohale confirmed on 8 May 2026, that a man had shown symptoms linked to the virus and had been sent for further testing. He said health officials are closely monitoring the situation while investigations continue.

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“As the Department of Health, we can confirm that contact identification, tracing and monitoring of all people who were on the flight travelling between St Helena and OR Tambo with those who tested positive, are currently underway,” Mohale said.

In the Western Cape, four people have been identified for contact tracing. One of them has since been taken for laboratory testing after developing symptoms similar to hantavirus.

Authorities say contact tracing has now been expanded globally, with 62 people being monitored following possible exposure linked to confirmed cases.

See post from SABC News:

British national suspected of contracting the virus

Meanwhile, a new suspected case has been reported on the remote island of Tristan da Cunha, involving a British national. The volcanic island in the South Atlantic is one of the most isolated inhabited places in the world, located more than 2,700km from South Africa.

The island was one of the stops made by the MV Hondius during a cruise last month, which arrived there on 13 April.

Health authorities say investigations are ongoing across multiple countries as they work to track and contain possible exposure routes linked to the virus.

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Dutch flight attendant in isolation after contact with hantavirus patient in SA

Dutch flight attendant suspected of contracting the virus

In related news, in a separate update, the World Health Organisation confirmed that a Dutch woman who had been in contact with a fatal hantavirus case has tested negative. The woman, a KLM flight attendant, was briefly hospitalised in Amsterdam after showing mild symptoms, but doctors have now ruled out infection. According to reports, the exposure may have happened in Johannesburg, South Africa, where she came into contact with a 69-year-old Dutch woman who later died from hantavirus infection just one day after.

Hantavirus survivor talks about her experiences

Briefly News also reported that a hantavirus survivor has shared her terrifying ordeal after contracting the virus in 2022, amid the latest confirmed cases. Kristen Musson originally experienced flu-like symptoms, but was then placed on life support and put into a medically induced coma. Recent hantavirus cases on board the MV Hondius, a cruise ship off Cape Verde, have sparked fresh concern about the virus.

Source: Briefly News