The viral illness has already claimed the lives of three other passengers from the same cruise ship.
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In a worrying development, the South African Department of Health has confirmed that a British national is receiving critical care in a Johannesburg hospital after contracting hantavirus.
The viral illness has already claimed the lives of three other passengers from the same cruise ship.
Foster Mohale, spokesperson for the national Department of Health, said the passenger fell ill while the vessel was sailing between St Helena and Ascension.
"Despite medical treatment provided to him at Ascension, his condition did not improve and necessitated his medical evacuation to a South African private health facility in Sandton for further medical management.
"His laboratory test results came back positive for hantavirus - a rare but potentially deadly virus transmitted primarily by rodents. The patient is still in critical condition in isolation but receiving medical attention," Mohale said.
Hantavirus is a disease spread primarily by rodents.
"While the ship was travelling past South African shores, some of the passengers experienced serious health complications arising from what was initially considered severe acute respiratory infections," said Mohale.
Authorities have moved quickly to trace anyone who may have come into contact with infected passengers.
Despite growing concern over the outbreak, officials are urging calm, insisting the risk to the South African public remains low as investigations continue into the deaths and illnesses linked to the cruise ship's voyage.
The first case involved a 70-year-old male passenger who fell ill unexpectedly while the ship was travelling from Ushuaia to St Helena Island.
He developed symptoms including fever, headache, abdominal pain and diarrhoea, and sadly died upon arrival at St Helena. His body remains on the island pending repatriation to the Netherlands.
The second patient was a 69-year-old woman, the wife of the deceased man. She later collapsed at OR Tambo International Airport while attempting to board a connecting flight back to her home country, the Netherlands.
"In our view, there is no need for the public to panic because only two patients from the cruise ship have been within our borders.
"The World Health Organisation (WHO) is coordinating a multi-country response with all affected islands and countries to contain further spread of the disease," said Mohale.
The ship, carrying about 150 tourists from various countries, had departed Ushuaia, Southern Argentina, for the Canary Islands about three weeks ago.
En route to its destination, the ship went past several islands, including mainland Antarctica, the Falklands, South Georgia, Nightingale Island, Tristan, St Helena, and Ascension.