May 10, 2026, 1:58 p.mMay 10, 2026, 1:58 p.m
The Turkish YouTuber and influencer Ruhi Çenet has 18 million subscribers – and is currently fighting a real shitstorm 20 minutes reported on Sunday. The reason for this: Çenet was on board the MV Hondius, which was plagued by the hantavirus, and left the ship after the outbreak to celebrate a wedding.
Accordingly, the 35-year-old boarded the cruise ship in Argentina on April 1st. On April 11, the first of three people on board the MV Hondius died of hantavirus. On April 24th – around two weeks after this first death – Çenet disembarked in St. Helena. His next destination: Istanbul, where he finally took part in a big wedding on May 3rd.
A picture then circulated on social media showing the YouTuber at the festivities. Çenet’s answer: The photo was actually taken before May 2nd. This is relevant because the World Health Organization (WHO) first drew attention to the hantavirus on May 3rd.
In an Instagram post on Saturday, Çenet further wrote: “Since the moment the information was shared, I have been in quarantine just in case. I still don’t show any symptoms.” And in a story on the same portal, the YouTuber addressed his followers: “Hopefully you don’t misunderstand this message. I didn’t get a fever, I’m fine.”
The WHO emphasized at a press conference on Thursday that although the virus can be transmitted from person to person, there is no reason to panic. It is neither the beginning of an epidemic nor the beginning of a pandemic, said the WHO’s director of epidemic and pandemic preparedness. Nevertheless, numerous hate messages are now reaching the YouTuber, like this US portal TMZ reported.
(cpf)