Preparations are underway prior to the arrival of the MV Hondius cruise ship at the Port of Rotterdam, Netherlands, on May 18, 2026.
| Photo Credit: AP

Passengers of the cruise ship MV Hondius, which was affected by a hantavirus outbreak, board a EuroAtlantic Airways aircraft bound for Canada at Tenerife Sud airport, on May 10.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Passengers evacuated from the cruise ship MV Hondius, which was affected by a hantavirus outbreak, disembark after landing at the Eindhoven Air Base, Netherlands, on May 12, 2026.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

An ambulance departs the air base on the day passengers of the cruise ship MV Hondius, which was affected by a hantavirus outbreak, arrive at the Eindhoven Air Base, Netherlands on May 10, 2026.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

A repatriated British national from the cruise ship MV Hondius, which was affected by a hantavirus outbreak, disembarks a plane at Manchester Airport in Manchester, Britain, on May 10, 2026.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

A cruise ship hit with a deadly hantavirus outbreak arrived in Spain’s Canary Islands Sunday (May 10, 2026), where most of the nearly 150 people on board will be evacuated and flown home after weeks at sea.

The Dutch-flagged MV Hondius arrived at the Spanish port of Granadilla escorted by a Civil Guard vessel, AFP journalists reported, confirmed by data from the maritime tracking service VesselFinder.

Passengers and some of the crew are expected to evacuate before the ship, where an outbreak of hantavirus led to the deaths of three people, continues on its way to the Netherlands.

Three passengers from the ship — a Dutch husband and wife and a German woman — have died, while others have fallen sick with the rare disease, which usually spreads among rodents.

The only hantavirus type that can transmit from person to person — the Andes virus — has been confirmed among those who have tested positive, fuelling international concern.

“We classify everybody on board as what we call a high-risk contact,” WHO’s epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention director Maria Van Kerkhove said Saturday (May 9, 2026).

But the risk to the general public and the people of the Canaries remained low, she added.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who arrived in Spain on Saturday (May 9, 2026) and is expected to oversee the ship evacuation, gave the same assurance and thanked the people of Tenerife for their solidarity.

“I need you to hear me clearly,” Mr. Tedros wrote in an open letter to the people of Tenerife on Saturday (May 9, 2026): “This is not another Covid.”

After arriving in Tenerife, he said he was confident the operation would be a success. “Spain is ready and prepared,” he told reporters.

Daily life uninterrupted

At the port of Granadilla de Abona early Sunday (May 10, 2026) morning, AFP journalists saw white tents had been set up along the quay and the police had secured part of the port.

Despite the situation, daily life appeared largely normal: some people were swimming, others shopping at the market or sitting at cafe terraces.

“There are worries there could be a danger, but honestly, I don’t see people being very concerned,” said David Parada, a lottery vendor.

Regional authorities have refused to allow the vessel to dock. Instead, it will remain offshore while passengers are screened and evacuated between Sunday and Monday — the only window health officials say the weather will allow.

Cruise operator Oceanwide Expeditions said earlier that “all guests and a limited number of crew members” were expected to begin to leave the ship from around 0700 GMT.

“Once disembarked, they will be transferred immediately to their allocated aircraft,” the Dutch firm said.

The WHO said Friday (May 8, 2026) it had confirmed six cases out of eight suspected ones. There are no suspected cases remaining on the ship.

The MV Hondius is sailing from Cape Verde, where three infected people had already been evacuated earlier in the week.

Tracking and tracing

In Madrid, Spain’s health and interior ministers insisted there would be “no contact” with the local population, and that passengers would leave “by nationality groups”.

“All areas (the passengers) pass through will be sealed off,” the interior minister said, adding a maritime exclusion zone would be in force around the vessel.

The MV Hondius left Ushuaia, Argentina on April 1 for a cruise across the Atlantic Ocean to Cape Verde.

Provincial health official Juan Petrina said there was an “almost zero chance” the Dutch man linked to the outbreak contracted the disease in Ushuaia based on the virus’s incubation period, among other factors.

Health authorities in several countries have been tracking passengers who had already disembarked and anyone who may have come into contact with them.

A flight attendant on the Dutch airline KLM, who came into contact with an infected passenger from the cruise ship and later showed mild symptoms, tested negative for hantavirus, the WHO said Friday (May 8, 2026).

The passenger — the wife of the first person to die in the outbreak — had briefly been on a plane bound from Johannesburg to the Netherlands on April 25, but was removed before take-off.

She died the following day in a Johannesburg hospital.

Spanish authorities said a woman on that flight was being tested for hantavirus, having developed symptoms at home in eastern Spain. She is in isolation in the hospital, said health secretary Javier Padilla.

Two Singapore residents who had been on the ship tested negative for the disease but would remain in quarantine, the city-state’s authorities said Friday (May 8, 2026).

British health authorities also said Friday (May 8, 2026) there was a suspected case on Tristan da Cunha, one of the world’s most isolated settlements with around 220 people.

Published – May 10, 2026 11:43 am IST

The story so far:

Following a hantavirus outbreak on the MV Hondius expedition cruise ship in early May, in which three deaths were reported and at least five others were infected, global attention has once again turned to the group of viruses. Hantavirus had made headlines last year following the passing of Betsy Hackman, the wife of renowned American actor Gene Hackman.

What happened on the ship?

The Dutch expedition cruise ship was travelling from Ushuaia in Argentina across parts of the South Atlantic towards Cape Verde and the Canary Islands when cases were identified among both the passengers and the crew.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said 147 passengers and crew were onboard, and 34 passengers and crew had previously disembarked. It said that as of May 8, there were eight cases (six confirmed and two probable cases) reported. Three of them died (two confirmed and one probable) after contracting the Andes strain of hantavirus. Several others were hospitalised with symptoms including fever and breathing difficulties.

After confirmed and suspected cases had been identified among passengers after they left the ship and travelled to different countries, health authorities in Singapore, Switzerland, South Africa, Spain, and the U.S. began tracking and monitoring passengers.

What is hantavirus?

Hantaviruses are a group of viruses mainly carried by rodents such as rats and mice. Human beings can get infected after coming into contact with infected rodent urine, saliva, or droppings, especially while cleaning or disturbing contaminated areas, which can release virus particles into the air.

Hantavirus infections can affect either the lungs or the kidneys. Some strains can cause hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a severe respiratory illness, while others can lead to haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome, affecting the kidneys and blood vessels. WHO states that even though most hantaviruses do not spread from one human to another, the Andes virus strain found in parts of South America has shown some human-to-human transmission, usually among close contacts.

Why are health agencies concerned now?

The outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship drew attention because passengers travelled across several countries before the infection was identified. WHO reported that cases were characterised by fever, gastrointestinal symptoms, pneumonia, respiratory distress, and shock. Reacting to fears of another pandemic, officials from WHO and the Disease Control and Prevention have stressed that hantavirus spreads very differently from viruses such as COVID-19 and is far less transmissible.

What are the symptoms?

WHO states that symptoms usually appear between one and eight weeks after exposure. Early symptoms are often flu-like and can include fever, muscle aches, fatigue, headache, chills, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and dizziness.

In severe cases, the infection can affect the lungs, causing coughing, chest tightness, breathing difficulty, and fluid build-up in the lungs. Some forms of the disease can also affect the kidneys and blood vessels, leading to kidney complications or bleeding problems. Since the symptoms can resemble illnesses such as influenza, COVID-19, dengue, or pneumonia, diagnosis may sometimes be delayed. Even though infections remain rare overall, severe respiratory forms of hantavirus infection can be dangerous, particularly without early medical care.

Who is at risk?

People living or working in rodent-prone environments face the highest risk. Farmers, forestry workers, campers, construction workers, and people cleaning poorly ventilated or abandoned buildings are vulnerable. Health agencies also advise caution while handling pet rodents or entering rodent-infested spaces.

Is there a treatment or cure?

WHO notes that early diagnosis and timely medical attention can significantly improve outcomes. Prevention is important, particularly through rodent control, proper sanitation, and safe cleaning practices in potentially contaminated environments.

Currently, there is no specific antiviral cure or approved vaccine for hantavirus infection. Treatment mainly focuses on supportive medical care, including oxygen therapy, fluid management, and intensive care support during severe illness. Some patients may require mechanical ventilation.

Could this become another pandemic?

Public health agencies say current evidence does not suggest a COVID-19-like global pandemic scenario. WHO has repeatedly stated that the overall risk to the wider public remains low and that hantavirus does not spread easily between humans like airborne viruses such as influenza or SARS-CoV-2.

The outbreak has also drawn attention to zoonotic diseases — infections that spread from animals to humans — and highlighted the importance of staying prepared as global travel and human-animal interactions increase. At the same time, WHO and other health agencies have stressed that stronger surveillance, quicker reporting, testing systems, and coordination between countries are helping health authorities respond effectively.

Published – May 10, 2026 03:34 am IST

The World Health Organization’s chief is due in the Spanish island of Tenerife on Saturday (May 9, 2026) to help coordinate the evacuation of passengers hit by the hantavirus, Spanish Ministry sources said.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus will accompany Spain’s Health and Interior Ministers to a command post there “to ensure coordination between administrations, health control, and the application of the planned surveillance and response protocols”, the sources said.

Three passengers from the MV Hondius — a Dutch husband and wife and a German woman — have died, while others have fallen sick with the rare disease, which usually spreads among rodents.

The only hantavirus strain that can transmit from person to person — Andes virus — has been confirmed among those who have tested positive, fuelling international concern.

The Dutch-flagged vessel, which has around 150 people on board, is expected to arrive at the Spanish Canary Island of Tenerife on Sunday (May 9, 2026). Special flights will then take passengers to their home countries.

Earlier on Friday (May 8, 2026), the WHO said that the hantavirus outbreak posed a minimal risk to the general public.

“This is a dangerous virus, but only to the person who’s really infected, and the risk to the general population remains absolutely low,” WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier told reporters.

A picture was emerging from MV Hondius where “even those who have been sharing cabins don’t seem to be both infected in some cases”, when one has fallen sick, he added.

“The virus is not that contagious that it easily jumps from person to person,” he said.

The WHO said on Friday (May 9, 2026) there were six confirmed out of eight suspected cases of the virus so far. There are no suspected cases remaining on the ship.

KLM flight attendant negative

A flight attendant on the Dutch airline KLM, who came into contact with an infected passenger from the cruise ship and later showed mild symptoms, tested negative for hantavirus, the WHO said on Friday (May 9, 2026).

The passenger — the wife of the first person to die in the outbreak — had briefly been on a plane bound from Johannesburg to the Netherlands on April 25, but was removed before take-off.

She died the following day in a Johannesburg hospital.

Spanish authorities said a woman on that flight was being tested for hantavirus, having developed symptoms at home in eastern Spain. She is in isolation in hospital, said health secretary Javier Padilla.

Watch: Hantavirus: What you need to know | Explained

“This is a pretty unlikely case,” he told reporters: someone “two rows behind the person who died with hantavirus”.

Spanish Interior Ministry sources said a South African woman who was also on the flight “is currently asymptomatic in South Africa after staying in Barcelona for a week before returning to her country”.

Two Singapore residents who had been on the ship tested negative for the disease but would remain in quarantine, the city state’s authorities said Friday.

Relief on board: YouTuber

The MV Hondius left Ushuaia, Argentina on April 1 for a cruise across the Atlantic Ocean to Cape Verde.

Three suspected cases, including two crew members who later tested positive, were evacuated from Cape Verde to the Netherlands.

The third person tested negative, German authorities said on Friday (May 9, 2026), but would remain under observation.

Provincial health official Juan Petrina said there was an “almost zero chance” the Dutch man linked to the outbreak contracted the disease in Ushuaia based on the virus’s incubation period, among other factors.

YouTuber Kasem Ibn Hattuta, who is travelling on the Hondius, said passengers were reassured that doctors had joined the ship.

“We finally left Cape Verde which was a relief for everyone on board, specially knowing that our sick colleagues are finally getting the medical care they need,” he said in a statement.

Everyone was keeping in high spirits, he added: “People are smiling and taking the situation calmly.”

People were wearing masks indoors and keeping their distance from others, he said.

Repatriation plans

The United States said on Friday (May 9, 2026) it was arranging an evacuation fight for Americans on the ship, who would then be taken to a quarantine facility in Nebraska.

Spanish authorities have said the ship will anchor off Tenerife and will not be allowed to dock.

Passengers will be transferred to shore on a smaller vessel then by bus to the airport.

The evacuation must happen between Sunday (May 10) and Monday (May 11) due to likely adverse weather conditions afterwards, the Canarian regional government said.

Dockers in Tenerife protested on Friday (May 9, 2026) against the arrival of the ship.

The cruise called at several remote British islands in the South Atlantic.

British health authorities said on Friday (May 9, 2026) there was a suspected case on Tristan da Cunha, one of the world’s most isolated settlements with around 220 people.

Published – May 09, 2026 11:06 am IST

Health workers in protective gear evacuate patients from the MV Hondius cruise ship into an ambulance at a port in Praia, Cape Verde on May 6, 2026.
| Photo Credit: AP

Ships at dock at Granadilla port, where the MV Hondius, carrying nearly 150 people, is expected to arrive within three days, Spain’s Health Minister Monica Garcia said, adding that those on board were not presenting any symptoms of the disease, in Granadilla de Abona, Spain, May 7, 2026.
| Photo Credit: Reuters