The hantavirus-stricken MV Hondius departed the Spanish island of Tenerife for the Netherlands on Monday, following the evacuation of the last remaining passengers and several crew members from the luxury cruise ship. The vessel briefly docked at the port of Granadilla de Abona, where six passengers—four Australians, one Briton living in Australia, and a New Zealander—disembarked along with 19 crew members and two doctors. The ship then continued to the Netherlands carrying 25 crew members, a doctor, and a nurse.
The evacuated passengers and staff were transported by bus to a local airport in Tenerife before boarding two flights to the Netherlands, according to the Dutch Foreign Ministry. Dutch authorities stated that the crew would complete quarantine in the Netherlands, while the passengers' flight would continue to Australia, where local authorities would determine quarantine arrangements.
"Mission accomplished; we've just wrapped up the operation and the ship has just set sail," Spanish health minister Monica Garcia said, as quoted by Reuters.
The evacuation operation has resulted in 94 people being repatriated to their countries of residence, 41 days after the MV Hondius left southern Argentina and nine days after the first positive test result for the respiratory viral infection. Three people—a Dutch couple and a German national—have died since the outbreak began onboard. The virus is usually spread by wild rodents, though rare person-to-person transmission can occur through close contact.
The World Health Organisation reported seven confirmed cases of the Andes strain of hantavirus and two suspected cases—one involving a person who died before being tested, and another on Tristan da Cunha, where testing was unavailable.
Among the confirmed cases was a French passenger whose condition was deteriorating after testing positive when the ship docked in the Canary Islands on Sunday, French Health Minister Stephanie Rist said.
Spanish health authorities also stated that one of 14 Spaniards quarantining at a military hospital in Madrid had tested positive, although the patient showed no symptoms and further tests were being carried out.
The US Department of Health and Human Services said one of the 17 Americans being repatriated had tested mildly positive for the Andes strain, while another American showed mild symptoms. Spanish authorities reported that a second laboratory test on the first American produced inconclusive results.
Health officials emphasized that the virus does not spread easily between people and that the risk to the general public remains low.
The MV Hondius had been carrying 147 passengers and crew from 23 countries when a cluster of severe respiratory illnesses among passengers was first reported to the WHO on May 2. By then, 34 passengers had already disembarked on Atlantic islands before the ship headed toward Cape Verde.
The outbreak was first identified by health officials in Johannesburg treating a British man who had disembarked from the ship, around three weeks after the first passenger death was reported.
The ship sailed to the Canary Islands on May 6 after Spain accepted a WHO request to oversee the evacuation operation.
Speaking at a press conference in Tenerife, WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said authorities decided against keeping passengers quarantined onboard because of growing mental health concerns. "There was even mental breakdown for some of the passengers. It's very difficult to stay for weeks in a small container. This was the best and the only option we had," Tedros said, as quoted by Reuters.
Earlier, the ship's captain, Jan Dobrogowski, praised the patience and discipline shown by passengers and crew during the outbreak.
Tedros stated that the WHO had recommended a 42-day quarantine for all passengers.
