4 dead after cruise boat with 40 people overturns in Madhya Pradeshs Jabalpur | Tentagraph | Tentagraph

4 dead after cruise boat with 40 people overturns in Madhya Pradeshs Jabalpur | Tentagraph | Tentagraph

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Indian Express·Sunday, May 10, 2026

How a rare bird search turned a Dutch birdwatcher into patient zero of a deadly cruise outbreak

How a rare bird search turned a Dutch birdwatcher into patient zero of a deadly cruise outbreak

NewsWorldHow a rare bird search turned a Dutch birdwatcher into 'patient zero' of a deadly cruise outbreak

Investigators believe the couple may have been exposed to the virus on March 27 during a visit to a landfill site outside Ushuaia.

3 min readMay 10, 2026 12:25 PM IST

First published on: May 10, 2026 at 12:25 PM IST

A Spanish Civil Guard officer inspects the area where passengers from the MV Hondius cruise ship are expected to arrive at the port of Granadilla in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain. (Photo: AP/ Leo Schilperoord/ Facebook)

A 70-year-old Dutch birdwatcher was identified as the first known case of the hantavirus outbreak linked to a cruise ship, MV Hondius, according to reports by the New York Post.

Leo Schilperoord, an ornithologist from the Netherlands, is believed to have contracted the virus during a birdwatching trip to a landfill site near Ushuaia ahead of boarding the vessel.‘Patient zero’ identified

Schilperoord and his wife, Mirjam Schilperoord, had been travelling across South America for several months before joining the cruise ship in April this year.

He developed symptoms including fever, headache and stomach pain days after boarding and later died on the ship.

Workers set up temporary shelters in the area where passengers from the MV Hondius cruise ship are expected to arrive at the port of Granadilla in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain. (Photo: AP)

According to investigators, the couple may have been exposed to the virus on March 27 during a visit to a landfill site outside Ushuaia.Story continues below this ad

The area is known to attract birdwatchers because of rare species, but authorities say it is also home to rodents that might carry the hantavirus.

“It is common for birdwatchers to visit landfills because there are many birds there,” a local guide was quoted as saying.

Health officials suspect the infection may have occurred through inhalation of particles from rodent droppings.

Wife dies after evacuation

Indian Express·Saturday, May 2, 2026

After Jabalpur tragedy, Varanasi Police crack down on unsafe boats on Ganga

After Jabalpur tragedy, Varanasi Police crack down on unsafe boats on Ganga

3 min readLucknowMay 2, 2026 06:48 PM IST

Boats ferrying passengers on the Ganga in Varanasi. (Express Archive Photo by Vishal Srivastav)Following Thursday’s cruise boat tragedy in Madhya Pradesh’s Jabalpur that left nine people dead, Varanasi Police have stepped up safety measures on the Ganga, launching a special enforcement drive to check violations by boat operators. As part of this, authorities have seized 24 vessels found violating safety norms and registered cases against their operators.Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Atul Anjaan Tripathi said while routine inspections are conducted regularly, the special drive was launched from Friday. “We routinely inspect boats, but after the Jabalpur incident, we began a special campaign on Friday to check all vessels operating in the Ganga,” Tripathi said. “During the inspections, several boats were found violating safety norms. In many cases, passengers were either not wearing life jackets or were wearing them incorrectly.” Cases have been lodged at Kotwali, Bhelupur and Dashashwamedh Ghat police stations under BNS section 282 (rash navigation of vessel), he added. Heavy river traffic, especially during festivals According to officials, around 1,000 boats — traditional hand-rowed ones to motorboats — operate daily on the Ganga while about 25 cruise vessels offer more organised and premium rides. Boat services usually run from 5 am to 9 pm, with trips lasting between 30 minutes and two hours. Another 1,000 boats generally remain unused for most of the year but are brought into service during major religious events such as Makar Sankranti and Kartik Purnima, when the number of visitors rise sharply to 3-4 lakh or more, leading to a significant increase in river traffic to handle the heavy rush.Story continues below this ad On regular days, the city’s ghats see around 50,000 to 60,000 visitors, many of whom opt for boat rides to experience Varanasi’s cultural and religious landscape from the river. New system in the works Boat registration in Varanasi has so far been managed by the municipal corporation. This year, however, officials said the government has decided to shift the process to the Transport Department to improve regulation and management. A new online portal has been created where boat owners must upload vessel details. Officials said licences will be issued only after government-approved surveyors inspect the vessels and confirm that they meet the required safety rules. At present, 1,217 boats are registered with the Varanasi Municipal Corporation. However, the online registration system has not started functioning fully yet.Story continues below this ad On Thursday evening, what started out as a leisure cruise in the Bargi Dam reservoir in Jabalpur quickly turned into a nightmarish situation for those on board, with the boat capsizing and sinking with several people still inside. By Friday, nine bodies had been recovered, and 28 people were rescued. The dead included a four-year-old child. This is the second such tragedy in a space of a month. Last month, 15 pilgrims, mostly from Punjab, died after a motorboat carrying a group of devotees capsized in the Yamuna river in Vrindavan area of Mathura district. According to police, the motorboat was carrying around 27 pilgrims.