Featured Image Credit: JOAO LUIZ BULCAO / Contributor / Getty
Many people are concerned about the recent outbreak of hantavirus on board a Dutch cruise, and those concerns certainly haven't been calmed by a post from 2022 that seemingly predicts a health emergency and likens it to the COVID-19 pandemic.
While there have been a number of potential outbreaks in the years since the COVID-19 pandemic calmed down, the recent increase in human hantavirus incidents has left many on high alert.
Health officials and major organizations have thankfully downplayed the risk that the virus poses to the world despite several reported deaths so far, yet one eerie tweet has allowed theories to spiral and many to remain fearful that another pandemic is on the way.
Shared by X user 'soothsayer' on June 11, 2022, the post in question simply writes: "2023: Corona ended, 2026: Hantavirus."
Advert
It might be debatable whether COVID 'ended' in 2023, especially as cases are still being confirmed to this day and many countries repealed lockdown regulations far earlier than that, but the coincidence of timing with the latter prediction is certainly spooky.
"No other explanation other than the CIA predating world events with tweets," offered one user with wild speculation, whereas another added that "this has to be a simulation."
It's not the first time that people have discovered old tweets that seemingly correctly predict events years into the future, and it's likely not quite as 'real' as you might hope or expect.
While a Grok AI request in the post's top reply claims it’s merely a 'coincidence', accounts like this are typically created for the sole purpose of conducting these wild predictions, sharing countless posts, and then deleting the ones that don't come true.
One telltale sign is that the account was created in the same month as the tweet in question, suggesting that the predictions were posted en masse at the same time.
Of course, you'll never actually see the incorrect predictions because these accounts often remain private or hold no presence until they're thrust into the public eye once a tweet 'comes true', and that's almost definitely what's happened here.
Many people are wondering how the tweet could be fake if hantavirus has seemingly only just become a thing, but the virus is actually a long-standing umbrella term for viral infections originating from rodents, specifically from their urine or droppings.
Hantavirus was first discovered all the way back in 1978 and was originally related to cases near the Hantan River in South Korea. The latest outbreak is simply another strain that has appeared in an isolated location.
Scientists have outlined that both the risk of human-to-human contact is low, and that the symptoms aren't always fatal, as some people will experience mild flu-like side effects.
Hantavirus cases were originally discovered on the MV Hondius, a Dutch cruise ship housing 149 passengers of at least 23 different nationalities, with the first identification of symptoms occurring last month.
There has been a collaboration between the World Health Organization (WHO) and various global health agencies to properly assess and tackle the ongoing outbreak, although passengers have been allowed to return to their home countries.
Those on board the ship that came in contact with any of the individuals affected by hantavirus have been advised to isolate for a period of 45 days after returning home, but authorities have reaffirmed that the risk to public health remains low.
There have been three reported deaths related to the recent outbreak of hantavirus, stemming from eight confirmed cases overall.
Officials suspect that the disease originally made its way onto the cruise ship from a Dutch couple who had contracted it from a bird-watching outing in Ushuaia, Argentina, having visited a landfill site and potentially coming into contact with rodents carrying the infection during the tour.
This remains speculation at the time of writing, with Argentinian officials asserting that there have been no recorded cases of hantavirus in the surrounding province of Tierra del Fuego.
