Infectious virus samples go missing in major lab launching urgent investigation

An urgent investigation has been launched in Australia after three infectious virus samples vanished from a public health lab.

At Queensland's government's Public Health Virology Laboratory, three vials went missing of Hendra virus, lyssavirus and hantavirus, and they still remain unaccounted for, the state government has confirmed.

Hendra virus commonly affects horses and is rarely passed over to humans, but the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry states on its website that when contracted, it more often than not results in death.

"A small number of people have been infected with the virus, from infected horses. Tragically 4 of the 7 people who were infected have died. Five of these people were veterinary health professionals," it explains.

The vials went missing from a public health laboratory in Queensland, Australia (Getty stock)

Then you have lyssavirus, which is picked up through Australian bats - it is basically a form of rabies.

The Department of Health in the southeastern state of Victoria, in Australia, writes: "Early symptoms are flu-like and can include fever, headache, fatigue and malaise. Symptoms quickly progress to muscle weakness, sensory changes, confusion, convulsion, and loss of consciousness.

"Australian bat lyssavirus infection is almost always fatal, with death usually occurring within 1 to 2 weeks of symptoms starting. All three human cases resulted in death."

Finally, the last missing vial contains Hantavirus - a study of recent outbreaks labeled it 'very lethal' and is 'zoonotic', which means it is transferable between animals and humans.

The three vials containing deadly viruses have been missing since August last year (Getty stock)

"In the year 2020, 833 cases of hantavirus infection had been reported, with 35% mortality rate in the US," the report states.

However, the Australian government has urged residents that the missing vials are not a threat to humanity, and that they could have simply just been 'destroyed' rather than thrown out in general waste.

"It's difficult to conceive of a scenario whereby the public could be at risk," Chief health officer of Queensland Dr John Gerrard explained.

"It's important to note that virus samples would degrade very rapidly outside a low temperature freezer and become non-infectious."

Queensland's Chief health officer Dr John Gerrard urged residents not to panic (Dan Peled/Getty Images)

An investigation has been launched into the missing vials - which disappeared back in August last year - and Queensland Minister for Health Tim Nicholls said it will ensure a breach like this will not happen again.

"With such a serious breach of biosecurity protocols and infectious virus samples potentially missing, Queensland Health must investigate what occurred and how to prevent it from happening again," Nicholls said.

"The department has advised me it has taken all necessary steps since being made aware of the breaches, including notifying regulators. The investigation is the next step in this process."

"The Part 9 Investigation will ensure nothing has been overlooked in responding to this incident and examine the current policies and procedures in operation today at the laboratory."