WHO Official Says Hantavirus Outbreak Isn’t the ‘Next COVID’

‘This is not SARS-CoV-2. This is not the start of a COVID pandemic,’ says Maria Van Kerkhove.

A boat heads towards port from the cruise ship MV Hondius, stationary off the port of Praia, the capital of Cape Verde, on May 6, 2026. AFP via Getty Images

An outbreak of the deadly hantavirus on a cruise ship off the coast of Cape Verde will not become the “next COVID,” said an official with the World Health Organization (WHO) this week.

“This is not the next COVID,” Maria Van Kerkhove, director of epidemic and pandemic preparedness at the UN health body, said at a news conference on Wednesday. “Most people will never be exposed to this.”