A deadly hantavirus outbreak aboard the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius has triggered pandemic flashbacks for many, even as health experts rush to reassure the public this is nothing like Covid-19. Three passengers have died and at least five others fell ill aboard the vessel, which is now heading toward Tenerife for evacuation. The outbreak has sparked contact tracing, P.C.R. testing and familiar images of workers in protective gear.

Medical professionals acknowledge the psychological weight of this moment. Dr. Celine R. Gounder, an infectious disease expert who treated Covid patients in New York, described experiencing "Covid P.T.S.D." — unable to walk past certain locations without seeing refrigerated mortuary trucks. The WHO's Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove was unequivocal: "This is not SARS-CoV-2. This is not the start of a Covid pandemic." Unlike most hantavirus strains, the Andes strain identified here can transmit between people through repeated close contact.

The outbreak has ignited political friction. Spain's Canary Islands president protested allowing the ship to dock, while some on the far right have already used the situation to warn against new mask mandates. Dr. Ashish Jha, who led the Biden administration's pandemic response, said on the Today show that contact tracing should contain the spread. The key difference: hantavirus requires sustained close contact to transmit between people, unlike airborne coronavirus.