The WHO said on Sunday that three individuals had perished on a cruise ship in the Atlantic, one of them had a confirmed case of hantavirus, a disease often spread by rodents to humans.
The epidemic happened while the MV Hondius was sailing from Ushuaia, Argentina, to Cape Verde.The WHO told AFP that there are currently five suspected cases and one laboratory-confirmed case of hantavirus infection.Three of the six affected people have passed away, and one is presently receiving critical treatment in South Africa.
The health ministry of South Africa informed AFP earlier on Sunday that there had been an outbreak of a "severe acute respiratory illness" that had killed at least two people and left a third in critical care in Johannesburg.

According to South African spokesperson Foster Mohale, the patient receiving treatment in Johannesburg tested positive for a hantavirus, a family of viruses that can cause hemorrhagic fever.
"Hantavirus infections are usually linked to environmental exposure (exposure to infected rodents' urine or faeces)," the WHO said in a statement.
"While rare, hantavirus may spread between people, and can lead to severe respiratory illness and requires careful patient monitoring, support and response."Wife and husband
A 70-year-old traveller was the first to exhibit symptoms. According to Mohale, the South African spokesperson, he passed away on board the ship, and his body is presently in the British colony of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic.
He added that they were still unable to verify the victims' nationalities. His wife, 69, too became unwell on board and was transported to South Africa, where she passed away in a hospital in Johannesburg.
The third patient, a 69-year-old British national, was also transported to Johannesburg for critical care.A Dutch couple was among the deceased, according to a source with knowledge of the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity. The ship was still carrying the third casualty.
The anonymous source stated that talks were underway to determine whether two further ill passengers should be isolated in a hospital in Cape Verde before the ship proceeded to the Canary Islands in Spain.
In order to arrange for the medical evacuation of two passengers who had symptoms, the WHO stated that it was "facilitating coordination" between national authorities and the ship's management.Several travel agencies' websites list the MV Hondius as a polar cruise ship. Oceanwide Expeditions, a Dutch travel operator, runs it.
One of the cruises has an itinerary that includes stops in the islands of South Georgia and Saint Helena before sailing from Ushuaia to Cape Verde.
The MV Hondius was reportedly only off the port of Praia, the capital of Cape Verde, on Sunday, according to a number of online ship-tracking websites.
The ship has about 70 crew members and can hold about 170 passengers.Hantaviruses can infect humans by bites, dust inhalation, or contact with infected mice, rats, or their excrement. diverse regions of the world have diverse hantavirus varieties, each with its own set of symptoms.