None of the Canadians who were on a ship struck by an outbreak of deadly hantavirus had any known direct contact with anyone who was infected, British Columbia's provincial health officer says.
But Dr. Bonnie Henry said it was impossible to be completely sure, and four people from the ship who were flown to Victoria on Sunday were isolating on Vancouver Island for a minimum of 21 days.
“They were tired, I would say exhausted, but very relieved and grateful,” to be back in Canada, she told a news briefing in Victoria.
She said all were well and had no symptoms. "So, this is reassuring, but ... we are in a very critical phase of the incubation period," she said.
B.C.'s top doctor said the four are a couple in their 70s from the Yukon, a person in their 70s from Vancouver Island, and a person from B.C. in their 50s who now lives abroad.
Henry said they were isolating in three separate locations, with the Vancouver Island person back at their own home, and all would receive daily monitoring.
While all people on the MV Hondius were being regarded as "higher-risk contacts," the four who arrived in B.C. were in the “low-risk spectrum” of that category, Henry said.
She said another two passengers on the ship were from Ontario, while four other people in Canada are regarded as potential contacts, and all are asymptomatic for the rodent-borne illness.
Dr. Sudit Ranade, the Yukon’s chief medical officer of health, said Monday that hantavirus could develop very quickly, requiring a significant amount of high-level care, so it made sense for the Yukon passengers to stay in B.C.
Ranade said there were many indications the outbreak would not develop into a pandemic-level threat, but it was important to remember that person-to-person transmission of viruses could become severe.
He said that meant actively managing those who may have been exposed and keeping a watch for the illness in the timeframe that the illness might develop.
“And that, with hantavirus, is actually a fairly long time frame. So, it's important to remember that we will not know how this is going to develop until it actually does or does not develop, and that is going take time.”
In addition to the four being quarantined in B.C., others with connections to the outbreak are in Ontario and Quebec.
The Ontario passengers mentioned by Henry are a couple who Ontario Health Minister Sylvia Jones said were isolating in Grey Bruce, while a third person, a visitor to Canada, was isolating in the Peel Region.
None are currently being tested for the illness, including the visitor who had contact with an infected person.
Jones said all three were asymptomatic, and Ontario’s top doctor had suggested testing on asymptomatic people may not produce "appropriate results,” so it was best to monitor for symptoms.
Peel Public Health said it was monitoring the visitor to Canada and the risk to the broader community was "very low."
"We have clear protocols in place to support this person during quarantine and to ensure timely access to health care if needed," a spokesperson said in an email Monday.
Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer said last week that the Ontario couple and a person from Quebec were on the same flight to Johannesburg as a symptomatic person on April 25.
The Quebec provincial health department said in a statement Monday that the isolation period was over for their resident.
Marie-Claude Lacasse, communications director with the provincial health department, said their contact with hantavirus on the flight was considered “low risk” and they were showing no symptoms.
Lacasse said the person would monitor themself for 42 days post trip.
Two people from Alberta were also told to isolate after experiencing potential exposure on a flight.
While no one in Canada has tested positive in the outbreak, the number of positive cases internationally has grown since the evacuation of the ship with American and French officials confirming two more on Monday.
That brought the total number of deaths to three and cases to seven, the World Health Organization said Monday.
Officials said the travellers who returned to Canada were all asymptomatic before they took off in a plane chartered by the Public Health Agency of Canada and Global Affairs Canada, with support from the Canadian Armed Forces.
Henry said the arrival of the four cruise passengers in B.C. was "seamless and smooth" and they were screened and assessed by health staff dressed in protective gear.
She said the four were directly transferred from Victoria International Airport to secure, prearranged lodgings, where they would isolate for at least 21 days under direction from health officials.
The four would receive support obtaining medication and groceries during their isolation, Henry said.
"We are asking them, and so far everybody's complied, to stay within the lodging that they're in and not have people come over to visit," she said. "They can certainly talk with people, and I think access to the internet was something people were very happy to have, to be able to call family and friends and let them know that they're OK."
She said the four were not subject to legal orders to isolate, calling that a "last resort" if someone was in breach of their isolation. “But we don’t do that unless we absolutely need to,” she said.
Henry said the four "can go out for a walk but not around other people … these are very reasonable people.”
“I have no concerns that people are going to run off and go to a party,” she added, saying they must wear a mask when someone comes to their door, and they should have no close personal contacts.
Picture Courtesy: AP Photo/Peter Dejong
