“The situation evokes chilling memories of the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially the Diamond Princess nightmare, in which over 700 people were infected with the never-before-seen virus while locked down on a luxury cruise ship docked in Japan. But in the wake of discovering the hantavirus aboard the Hondius, health officials and infectious disease experts have been quick—and virtually unanimous—in trying to quell fears. While the situation within the ship certainly is an emergency requiring careful and prompt response for those on board, the risk to the outside world is low, and the outbreak is expected to stay relatively small. “This is not COVID. This is not influenza. It spreads very, very differently,” Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO’s acting director for epidemic and pandemic management, emphasized in a press briefing Thursday. Given the nature of this virus and the precautions and monitoring already in place, “the risk of widespread transmission to the general public is extremely low,” Michael Marks, an infectious disease expert and professor at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said in a statement Thursday.”