Residents are being urged to keep their surroundings clean, seal their homes, and dispose of garbage properly as health authorities monitor a hantavirus outbreak linked to a cruise vessel.
The Ministry of Health issued the guidance amid growing international attention to the outbreak. Principal Public Health Inspector at the Central Board of Health, Julienne Mannix-Galloway, delivered the advisory, calling on the public to take immediate and practical steps to eliminate conditions that attract rodents.
Hantavirus is a potentially serious illness transmitted primarily through contact with infected rodents or their droppings, urine, and nesting materials. Eliminating rodent habitats around homes and communities is considered a key preventive measure.
Mannix-Galloway's recommendations focus on basic but critical hygiene and household practices — proper waste disposal, sealing entry points in homes, and maintaining clean environments that discourage rodent activity.
The Ministry of Health continues to monitor the situation as authorities assess the scope of the outbreak and its connection to the cruise vessel in question. Further updates from health officials are expected as the monitoring effort progresses.
