A Luxury Cruise Turns Deadly: Hantavirus Outbreak Hits Ship Docked in Tenerife

The MV Hondius, a Dutch-flagged luxury cruise ship at the center of a deadly hantavirus outbreak, pulled into port near Granadilla in Tenerife early Sunday morning, escorted by a Civil Guard vessel. The ship had been sailing under a cloud of illness and fear since the World Health Organization and the European Union directed Spain to handle the evacuation of passengers after the virus was detected.

At least eight people aboard have fallen ill, with three deaths confirmed—a Dutch couple and a German national. The WHO reports six confirmed cases and two suspected. All passengers are now considered high-risk contacts as a precaution.

Spanish health authorities will test everyone on board for symptoms. Passengers will then be ferried to shore in small boats and taken by sealed-off buses to Tenerife’s main airport, just ten minutes away, where planes will fly them home. Spanish nationals will disembark first, followed by other groups. Thirty crew members will stay aboard to sail the ship to the Netherlands for disinfection.

Hantavirus, typically spread by rodents, can in rare cases pass from person to person. WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus arrived in Tenerife Saturday night to coordinate the response, telling locals, “This is not another Covid.” The risk to the general public in the Canary Islands remains low, said Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO’s epidemic preparedness director.

Life in Granadilla de Abona appeared normal Sunday morning, with residents swimming, shopping, and sitting at cafes. “There are worries, but honestly, I don’t see people being very concerned,” lottery vendor David Parada told AFP.

The MV Hondius began its voyage from Ushuaia, Argentina, on April 1, crossing the Atlantic to Cape Verde. Health authorities in Argentina, Singapore, Britain, and the Netherlands are tracking passengers who disembarked earlier. A KLM flight attendant who showed mild symptoms after contact with an infected passenger tested negative. A woman on a flight from Johannesburg to Amsterdam is being tested after developing symptoms at home in eastern Spain. Two Singapore residents who were on the ship tested negative but remain in quarantine. British officials are also investigating a suspected case on the remote island of Tristan da Cunha, where the ship stopped on April 15.