On May 10, Spain said it had begun to take its passengers off the cruise ship MV Hondius anchored near Tenerife after a hantavirus outbreak was detected on board.
Spanish citizens were the first group to be brought ashore by small boat in groups of 5 people. After that, they were transferred by bus to the local airport to board a military plane back to Madrid and were taken to a quarantine hospital.
Authorities emphasized that these passengers had no symptoms of viral infection and would not be in contact with the community.
The luxury yacht MV Hondius left Cape Verde for Spain after the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Union proposed that the country coordinate the evacuation of passengers due to the hantavirus.
WHO said that 8 people had left the ship to develop the disease, including 3 deaths including a Dutch couple and a German citizen. Among the 8 cases, 6 cases were confirmed to be infected with the virus and 2 cases were suspected of infection.
The European Public Health Agency assesses that all passengers on board are at high risk exposure, but the risk to the community in general remains low.
WHO recommends applying a 42-day quarantine period for passengers on trains from Sunday.
The Spanish Ministry of Health said the ship has passed the necessary medical checks. The agency's report stated that more than 500 yachts from Argentina and Chile, where the hantavirus exists, dock in European ports each year but no similar outbreaks have ever appeared.
Hantavirus is usually transmitted through rodents, although in some rare cases it can be transmitted from person to person. According to experts who boarded the ship for inspection, hygiene and environmental conditions on board were suitable and no rodents were detected.
Countries including Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, the United States, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands have sent planes to pick up their citizens. Spanish Health Minister Monica Garcia said that Dutch passengers will be the next group to leave the train, along with German, Belgian and Greek citizens.
After that, passengers from Turkey, France, England and the United States will be evacuated. The last flight of the operation departs from Australia and will pick up 6 people from Australia, New Zealand and some other Asian countries.
About 30 crew members will stay on board to take the ship to the Netherlands for disinfection.
