Top News

Canary Islands: The hantavirus-stricken cruise ship MV Hondius docked in Spain's Port of Granadilla in Tenerife, Canary Islands, on Sunday following days at sea marked by illness and death. Thereafter, Spain began evacuating passengers from the Dutch-flagged vessel, which is carrying 146 people from 23 countries 

The ship's arrival in Tenerife has left the islanders concerned about their safety.

The Disembarkation Process

Health officials wearing hazmat suits boarded the ship to conduct a final check before disembarkation began. Passengers were seen wearing PPE kits and faces masks.

The passengers were divided into groups according to their nationality. Spanish nationals were the first to leave the ship, ferried ashore in groups of five on small boats, transferred onto sealed buses, and taken to the local airport, from where they flew back to Madrid on a Spanish military plane with no contact with the public.

Repatriation flights were subsequently planned for passengers headed to the Netherlands, Canada, Turkey, France, Britain, Ireland and the United States.

The Canary Islands' regional government said it wanted all passengers off the ship and out of the islands by end of day Sunday.

The operation was time-sensitive. Spanish officials had warned that a narrow weather window around midday Sunday was the only viable opportunity, worsening wind and wave conditions from Monday could force the ship to leave without completing the evacuation, potentially delaying the operation until the end of May.

Protest Erupts, WHO Says ‘It’s Not COVID'

The ship's arrival in Spain was not without controversy. The Canary Islands' regional president Fernando Clavijo had initially opposed the docking, citing concerns about the safety of islanders, a view shaped partly by the region's experience during the Covid-19 pandemic. Port workers also held protests.

The WHO directly pushed back, saying Spain had a moral and legal obligation to accept the vessel.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus travelled to Tenerife and sought to reassure locals in an open letter, writing that the outbreak was "not another Covid." He said he was confident the operation would be a success and praised the people of Tenerife for their solidarity.

The virus at the centre of the outbreak is the Andes strain of hantavirus, the only known hantavirus capable of spreading between humans, though such transmission is rare and has previously occurred only through close, sustained contact.

Once the evacuation is complete, 30 crew members will remain on board and sail the MV Hondius to Rotterdam in the Netherlands, where the ship will be disinfected.

The Horror Voyage

The MV Hondius departed Ushuaia, Argentina, on 1 April 2026, on a 33-day expedition voyage. It followed an itinerary across the South Atlantic, with multiple stops in remote and ecologically diverse regions, including mainland Antarctica, South Georgia, Nightingale Island, Tristan da Cunha, Saint Helena, and Ascension Island.

The hantavirus outbreak is believed to have originated with the index case, a Dutch citizen who had taken a four-month road trip through Chile, Uruguay and Argentina before boarding. He died on board on April 11. Since no rodents were found on the ship, health officials believe the early cases contracted the virus during activities on land that exposed them to infected rodents or their excrement.

The deceased Dutchman's 69-year-old wife later became ill and died. Days later, a German passenger tested positive for the virus and died onboard the ship on May 2.

As of Sunday, six cases have been confirmed and two are suspected. Several patients had already been evacuated to hospitals during the voyage.