NORFOLK, Va. — There were no confirmed cases of Hantavirus in Virginia Thursday, but that didn't mean the virus wasn't on people's minds.
The virus had been making headlines for several days after an outbreak connected to a cruise ship that, as of Thursday, was off the coast of Africa.
Watch: Virginia traveler on MV Hondius not showing signs of hantavirus; VDH says public risk is low
“I haven’t been worried about it at all," said cruiser Kim Keizer.
Keizer spends a lot of time on cruise ships. In fact, as of Thursday she had several weeks of cruising scheduled. She also runs a travel agency and said she wasn't the only one who didn’t seem to be worried.
“There hasn't been any questions presented to us by any of our clients at all. I’ve kind of been surprised because normally you would think that would be a question," Keizer said.
Watch: Hantavirus outbreak on cruise ship may not have originated on board, officials say
For anyone who may be worried, though, Virginia Department of Health State Epidemiologist Dr. Laurie Forlano said she didn't expect this to be COVID-19 all over again.
“This is not the same situation. Most Hantaviruses are not transmissible person to person. The one involved here is. It does require that close contact, like the circumstances on the ship," Forlano explained.
Keizer is keeping up with news about the Hantavirus, though.
Watch: Several states monitoring former cruise ship passengers for hantavirus
“I’ve been reading about it. I’m learning more about the virus, learning about how it spreads, seeing what people are doing as far as other countries," Keizer explained.
As of May 7, the Hantavirus had killed three people on the cruise ship MV Hondius and the World Health Organization said five other people connected to the ship had been infected.
According to the WHO, Hantavirus infections are “relatively uncommon globally” but do infect 10,000 to over 100,000 people a year with a fatality rate of up to 50 percent in the Americas.
Watch: Gene Hackman died of heart disease, his wife died of hantavirus about 1 week prior, authorities say
“The current level of risk to the United States general public remains quite low," said Forlano.
Forlano said Hantavirus cases are rare in Virginia. As of Thursday, the last one was in 2021. She also said having a cruise terminal doesn’t necessarily put Hampton Roads at a higher risk.
Watch: Officials in Michigan confirm first human case of Sin Nombre hantavirus
“I don’t think Hantavirus outbreaks on cruise ships are a common occurrence," Forlano said.
If a passenger may have been exposed, the VDH will check in with them daily for the roughly six-week incubation period to monitor their health.
Thursday afternoon, VDH Commissioner, Dr. Cameron Webb, talked about the virus on a CNN program. He said a Virginia passenger on the ship was back in Virginia and being monitored but was not showing any symptoms.
"We've had great coordination with our partners in CDC, and it seems they've been in really good contact with WHO," Webb said. "This is a pretty complex, large-scale endeavor. So it seems like all parties are operating at the top of their game, sharing readily, taking it seriously so that we can all be appropriately prepared."
He went on to say as of Thursday a "small number" of Virginians remained on the Hondius. He declined to say an exact number, but said it was less than five.
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