Tenerife Cruise Ship Evacuation: Hantavirus Outbreak Hits MV Hondius
The evacuation of the cruise ship MV Hondius began Sunday morning in Tenerife, as Spanish authorities launched a massive repatriation operation following a localized hantavirus outbreak that claimed three lives earlier in the voyage.
The first group to leave the vessel at the Port of Granadilla included 14 Spanish nationals—13 passengers and one crew member. They were transported via military vehicle to Tenerife South Airport and flown to a military hospital in Madrid just before noon. Spanish Health Minister Mónica García, speaking from the port, confirmed that the operation is proceeding smoothly and under strict security protocols.
Global Repatriation Underway
The departure of the Spanish honeymooners and crew marks the beginning of a logistical marathon involving multiple nations. Five French nationals have already arrived at the airport for a flight organized by Paris, while four Canadians are slated as the next group to disembark. Throughout Sunday afternoon, 22 passengers from the United Kingdom, 17 from the United States, and citizens from Turkey and Ireland will also be removed from the ship for flights home.
The Netherlands is coordinating the transport for an additional 26 passengers and crew of various nationalities. The operation is expected to conclude on Monday afternoon with a final flight bound for Australia.
High Security, Low Risk
Despite the high-level response, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who traveled to Tenerife to oversee the operation, emphasized that the public should remain calm. “Hantavirus is a virus known to science and analyzed for years by experts,” Tedros said, noting that the current outbreak represents a “low risk” to the general population.
To ensure zero contact with the local community, authorities have established an isolated corridor between the industrial port and the airport runway. Passengers only leave the ship once their specific repatriation flight is ready for takeoff, moving directly from the pier to military vehicles and then to the planes.
Background of the Outbreak
The MV Hondius, owned by Oceandrive, was traveling from Argentina to Cape Verde when an international health alert was triggered last weekend. The WHO has confirmed six cases of hantavirus among those who had been on the vessel, with two other suspected cases. Three people have died, though none of the current 147 people on board—who are all reported to be asymptomatic—are among the confirmed patients.
While hantaviruses are typically transmitted from rodents to humans, this specific strain, the Andes hantavirus, is a rare variant capable of person-to-person transmission. The ship had previously been held under quarantine in Cape Verde before being diverted to the Canary Islands for this coordinated European Union evacuation.
Once the disembarkation is complete on Monday morning, the Dutch-flagged vessel will be refueled and is expected to continue its journey to the Netherlands with approximately 30 crew members remaining on board.
Image: Pexels – Jo Kassis
