Spain Evacuates Cruise Ship After Deadly Hantavirus Outbreak
MADRID – The Spanish government has finalized plans for what officials are calling an “unprecedented” international mission to evacuate and repatriate more than 100 people from a cruise ship struck by a rare hantavirus outbreak.
A High-Stakes Maritime Operation
The cruise ship MV Hondius, carrying 147 people from 23 different nationalities, is expected to drop anchor off the coast of Tenerife in the Canary Islands early Sunday morning. The ship was previously held in quarantine in Cape Verde after a health alert was triggered during its journey from Argentina.
Spanish Health Minister Mónica García described the mission as an “operation of unparalleled international magnitude.” The World Health Organization (WHO) selected the Canary Islands as the evacuation point, citing the region’s superior logistical and security infrastructure. The move comes despite recent local protests regarding the risks of hosting the vessel.
Strict Isolation Protocols
To ensure the safety of the local population, Minister of the Interior Fernando Grande-Marlaska confirmed that the entire operation will bypass public areas. The MV Hondius will not dock; instead, it will remain anchored at sea while small groups are ferried by launch to a restricted zone at the industrial port of Granadilla.
From the port, a 10-kilometer “secure corridor” will be established to transport passengers via military vehicles directly to the Tenerife South airport runway. “The deployment is fully prepared to ensure the operation proceeds under maximum security,” Grande-Marlaska said. All personnel involved will be required to wear full protective health equipment.
Repatriation and Quarantine
While all individuals currently on board are reportedly asymptomatic, strict quarantine measures remain in place. The 14 Spanish nationals on board will be the first to disembark, headed for a military hospital in Madrid.
Other passengers will be repatriated through the European Civil Protection Mechanism. The United States and the United Kingdom have already confirmed they are sending dedicated aircraft to retrieve their citizens. Meanwhile, 43 crew members will remain on the MV Hondius as it continues to its home port in the Netherlands on Monday. The body of a German passenger who died during the voyage also remains on board for transport to the Dutch authorities.
Global Health Alert
The crisis began when the WHO was alerted to the deaths of three passengers during the ship’s South Atlantic crossing. Health officials have since confirmed six cases of hantavirus out of eight suspects. Standard hantaviruses are typically transmitted from rodents to humans, but the specific variant identified in this outbreak—the Andes hantavirus—is particularly dangerous due to its rare ability to spread from person to person.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is scheduled to arrive in the Canary Islands today to oversee the operation after meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in Madrid. The mission is being coordinated by a joint task force including Spain, the Netherlands, the WHO, and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
Image: Pexels – Karina Badura
