Three Dead, Human-to-Human Hantavirus Transmission Suspected on Cruise Ship Off Cape Verde; WHO Involved

All passengers and crew from the MV Hondius have now been evacuated. A group comprising 6 passengers and 19 crew members were flown to the Netherlands from the Canary Islands via air ambulance. Among the passengers were four Australian nationals, one British national, and one New Zealander. The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed these individuals were immediately placed in quarantine, with necessary medical treatment provided to those requiring it.

New reports confirm an American and a French national who had left the cruise ship have tested positive for hantavirus in their home countries. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services stated that 18 passengers were flown back to the U.S. and quarantined; one passenger tested positive and is in a Nebraska biocontainment unit, while another American national on the repatriation flight showed mild symptoms. Both U.S. passengers travelled back in biocontainment units. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Monday that there are seven confirmed and two suspected cases linked to the MV Hondius.

Evacuations from the MV Hondius cruise ship, anchored off the Canary Islands, began on May 10th. Approximately 150 passengers from 23 countries are being evacuated in groups by nationality via small boats, with over 90 tourists ferried home on Sunday. A French national developed hantavirus symptoms during repatriation to France on a chartered flight from Tenerife, leading to the individual and four other French citizens being placed in strict isolation.