U.S. travel influencer shares emotional message aboard cruise ship after hantavirus deaths

A passenger aboard a cruise ship with a deadly hantavirus outbreak is speaking out about his ordeal. Scott Hurst reports.

An American travel influencer has shared an emotional message on social media after three fellow cruise ship passengers died in what officials say is a hantavirus outbreak.

“I’m currently on board the MV Hondius, and what’s happening right now is very real for all of us here,” Jake Rosmarin said in an Instagram video posted on Monday.

“We’re not just a story,” he continued, his voice raspy as he appeared to be crying. “We’re not just headlines. We’re people – people with families, with lives, with people waiting for us at home.”

Taking a deep breath, Rosmarin added that the hardest part is “a lot of uncertainty.”

The Dutch ship MV Hondius has been awaiting help after authorities forbid passengers from disembarking at Cape Verde, an island off West Africa, because of public health concerns, The Associated Press reported.

The ship’s operator, Oceanwide Expeditions, has confirmed four Canadians are among the 149 people on board.

Rosmarin’s Instagram account indicates that he’s from Boston, has more than 49,000 followers and has travelled to 100 countries and territories across seven continents.

In his post, he also wrote that he is “doing well” despite finding the situation difficult to talk about.

Oceanwide Expeditions, which operates other polar expedition cruises, and the entire crew have “been handling this situation to the best of their ability,” he added.

Rosmarin published another post on the same day.

“Everyone on board is doing OK, and the focus continues to be on keeping everyone safe and informed,” he wrote.

In a press release Tuesday, Oceanwide Expeditions said two crew members on board require “urgent medical care” and preparations for their medical evacuation are underway. Investigations into the cases are continuing and officials are discussing plans to allow passengers off the ship, the company added.

Although people usually get infected with hantavirus through rodents and their droppings, urine or saliva, the World Health Organization said the virus could have been transmitted between humans on the ship.

With files from CNN