hantavirus cruise – Passengers started leaving the MV Hondius anchored off Tenerife as Spain, WHO, and international partners prepare quarantined evacuations.
A hantavirus outbreak aboard a cruise ship anchored off Tenerife began shifting into the next phase Sunday, with passengers starting to disembark under tight medical checks in Spain’s Canary Islands.
The MV Hondius remains anchored offshore rather than docking. and an Associated Press journalist on the scene reported seeing some people arriving on land after leaving the ship.. Spanish authorities said Spanish nationals would be the first to leave. carried off on small launch boats designed to transport roughly five to 10 people at a time.
Spanish health ministry officials. the World Health Organization and Oceanwide Expeditions said that nobody among the more than 140 people onboard is showing symptoms of the virus.. Still, authorities have emphasized that the situation requires careful screening because of the reported cases connected to the outbreak.
The cruise ship arrived off Tenerife on Sunday as part of the response effort.. Officials said three people have died since the outbreak began. and five passengers who left the ship earlier are infected with hantavirus.. Hantavirus can cause life-threatening illness. and officials noted that the Andes virus detected in this outbreak may. in rare cases. be able to spread between people.
Because symptoms typically develop between one and eight weeks after exposure. officials said the evacuation and monitoring plan focuses not just on immediate symptoms but on preventing contact and ensuring that anyone who needs follow-up care can be assessed quickly.. Everyone disembarking is set to undergo symptom checks. and passengers will only be taken off the ship once evacuation flights are ready to take them to their destinations.
Spain’s Health Minister Mónica García said the evacuation operation was proceeding normally. Authorities are aiming to complete evacuation flights between Sunday and Monday, according to Spanish officials and the WHO.
Officials said the operation will be supervised in Tenerife by WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. along with Spain’s health and interior ministers.. The Canaries are located off Spain’s west African coast. and officials said passengers and crew who disembark will have no contact with the local population.
The response also involves coordinating medical steps for different countries.. The ship has people of more than 20 nationalities onboard. and Spanish nationals will be transferred to a medical facility and quarantined first. with Oceanwide Expeditions listing 13 Spanish passengers and one Spanish crew member on board.. The cruise operator said only Spanish nationals will quarantine in Spain.
On shore, the fear is not only about disease but also about how people will be treated once they return.. Some Spanish passengers told the Associated Press they were concerned about stigma when they come back.. On Tenerife. residents also voiced unease. with 69-year-old Simon Vidal saying he did not like the idea of a ship arriving from another country and questioning why the incident had ended up in the Canary Islands.
International evacuation flights are already in motion.. The U.S., the U.K.. and the Netherlands have agreed to send planes to evacuate their citizens.. Americans on board will be quarantined at a medical center in Nebraska.. A Dutch charter flight is expected to include 29 people, including Dutch nationals and others of different nationalities.
France’s foreign ministry said five French passengers would be repatriated Sunday and taken to hospital for 72 hours of monitoring before quarantining at home for 45 days. British authorities said U.K. passengers and crew will be hospitalized for observation once they are flown home.
Spain’s health minister also said Australia is sending a plane expected to arrive Monday to evacuate its nationals and people from nearby countries such as New Zealand, and that Australia’s flight will be the last to leave Tenerife.
Norway has meanwhile sent an ambulance plane to Tenerife carrying personnel trained for transport of patients with high-risk infections, its Directorate for Civil Protection said. The aircraft is owned by the European Union but operated by Norway.
As passengers leave, authorities said strict movement rules will be applied to reduce risk. Disembarking passengers and crew members will leave behind their luggage and will be allowed to take only a small bag with essential items, including a cellphone, charger and documentation.
Some crew members, as well as the body of a passenger who died on board, will remain on the ship. Spanish authorities said the ship will sail on to Rotterdam, Netherlands, where it will undergo disinfection. The cruise company said the sailing time to Rotterdam is expected to be around five days.
hantavirus cruise ship Tenerife evacuation Canary Islands health response MV Hondius WHO supervision quarantine procedures Oceanwide Expeditions