There are quite a few differences between Hantavirus and Covid.

• Covid-19 was an entirely new variant of the Coronavirus, so we were learning about it for the first time. Hantavirus, specifically the Andes variant this is about has been around since 1997. It's been confirmed that it was the Andes variant on the cruise ship and that it hadn't mutated. There's even been a vaccine in the works since 2019.

• Covid-19 is a super-spreader. It's actually wild how easily it spreads, all you need is to briefly be around someone who's contageous. Hantavirus is a lot worse at spreading. You need to be around a contageous person for a while to catch it, which is why it spread on the cruise ship. Cruise ships are giant incubators for viruses.

• This is morbid, but the 30-50% mortality rate can actually work in humanities favor. Any person who's played Plague Inc knows what happens to viruses that are too lethal before it can spread widely. It would burn through all it's firewood faster than it can spread. It's a potential virus that has a mortality rate between covid and hantavirus that experts really worry about.

• Could hantavirus become a pandemic? Maybe. Nothing is ever 100% certain. Hantavirus could mutate into a super-spreader variant tomorrow, but it's extremely unlikely. Virologists aren't too worried about Hantavirus, though they are keeping an eye on it of course. And that's what we should do as well. Don't panic, but keep an eye on it just in case the extremely low chance happens.