The condition of a British ​man who was admitted to a ‌hospital in Johannesburg after falling ill with hantavirus aboard a luxury cruise ship is gradually improving, ​a South African health ministry spokesperson said ​on Monday.

"The British patient is clinically improving but ⁠still ill," the spokesperson, Foster Mohale, told ​Reuters. "This means his condition is improving, ​gradually so."

The man was medically evacuated to South Africa on April 27 after presenting with a fever, ​shortness of breath, and signs of ​pneumonia. He disembarked from the hantavirus-hit cruise ship MV ‌Hondius ⁠at Ascension Island in the Atlantic Ocean.

Hantaviruses are rodent-borne viruses that can infect people and cause illness.

The strain identified ​on the ​ship is ⁠the Andes hantavirus, which typically circulates in Argentina and Chile. ​The MV Hondius set off ​from ⁠Argentina and was carrying mostly British, American, and Spanish passengers.

Three people have died since ⁠the ​start of the outbreak - ​a Dutch couple and a German national.