WASHINGTON, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has classified the hantavirus outbreak as a "level 3" emergency, the lowest, ABC News reported on Thursday.

An ambulance arrives at the Infection Center of Düsseldorf University Hospital in a convoy of ambulances Wednesday, May 6, 2026, in Duesseldorf, Germany. (File photo: AFP)

This means a low risk to public health, but the situation is being actively monitored by the health agency, said the report.

On Thursday, the World Health Organization said that five of the eight cases reported on board the cruise ship MV Hondius had been confirmed as hantavirus infections, while the other three were considered suspected cases.

The WHO denied that the deadly hantavirus outbreak on the cruise ship was "the start of a COVID pandemic," saying its risk to the public remained low.