World News for Students of English

08-05-2026 15:00

There is a scary health problem on a cruise ship in the ocean. Three people died after catching a virus, and several others are very sick. One man from the UK is in the hospital in critical condition.

The virus is called hantavirus. Doctors think the passengers got the virus from rats or mice while they were visiting different places during their trip. The ship is now near West Africa, but the government there will not let the passengers get off the boat. They are afraid the virus will spread to their country. This means more than 100 people are still on the ship, and they can’t leave. They might have to sail for eight more days to find a place that will help them.

Some passengers are trying to stay calm, but others are very scared. The virus can stay in the body for many weeks before a person feels sick, which makes it very hard to control.

Difficult words: scary (when something makes you feel afraid or frightened), critical condition (a situation when someone is very, very sick and may die), get off (to leave a bus, train, plane, or ship).

You can watch the original video in the Level 3 section.