Canary Islands object to the docking of cruise ships

The three people, believed to have hantavirus infection, have been evacuated from the MV Hondius and are headed to the Netherlands.

The Dutch Foreign Ministry says that all three are citizens of the Netherlands, Britain and Germany.

The ministry said two of the evacuees were confirmed ill, while a third was suspected to have the infection. They are being transferred to specialized hospitals in Europe, although no further details were given.

A passenger on the cruise ship MV Hondius has tested positive for hantavirus after returning to Switzerland.

The Swiss Federal Office of Public Health said the man was being treated at the University Hospital Zurich after developing symptoms following travel to South America.

Officials said the patient returned with his wife in late April and sought medical care after falling ill. He said the hospital was prepared for such cases and the safety of staff and other patients was ensured.

The office said further cases were unlikely to be reported in Switzerland and the risk to the wider public was low. The patient’s wife has not shown any symptoms but has gone into self-isolation as a precautionary measure.

South African health officials have identified the Andes strain of hantavirus in passengers from a cruise ship outbreak.

The cases were confirmed after passengers were evacuated from a ship stranded in Cape Verde on Wednesday, officials said.

The World Health Organization has said that Andes virus is found mainly in South America, especially Argentina and Chile. Unlike most hantaviruses, it can spread between people, although transmission usually requires close contact such as sharing a bed or food.

South Africa’s health department said the findings were based on tests conducted after two passengers arrived from the ship. One, a British man, is in intensive care, while the second case was confirmed posthumously in South Africa following the death of a woman.

Three passengers have died in an outbreak linked to a ship that departed from Argentina. At least four other people have fallen ill, three of whom are still waiting to be evacuated from the ship.

The World Health Organization said two of the early cases – a Dutch woman who later died and her husband – had recently traveled to Argentina and elsewhere in South America before boarding the ship.

The Canary Islands’ regional government is opposed to allowing a luxury cruise ship hit by the deadly hantavirus outbreak to dock on the archipelago, says its leader.

Fernando Clavijo said he was concerned that security conditions could not be guaranteed.

“This decision is not based on any technical criteria, nor have we been provided with sufficient information to maintain the message of peace and guarantee the safety of the population in the Canary Islands,” Clavijo told the EFE news agency.

He questioned why it is not possible to take passengers to their respective countries from Praia International Airport, which serves the Cape Verde capital, where the cruise ship is currently anchored.

In a post on X, Clavijo said that the Canary Islands “cannot accept decisions taken behind the backs of Canarian institutions and without adequate information to the population.”

Clavijo also said he had requested an urgent meeting with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to discuss the matter. Clavijo is a member of the conservative People’s Party, the main opponent of Sánchez’s Socialists.

Any decision ultimately depends on Madrid, which supersedes regional authorities.

A cruise ship affected by Hantavirus has been docked near Cape Verde and is now preparing to sail to Spain instead of staying there.

Spanish officials said Tuesday that the ship would be received in the Canary Islands within three to four days.

The MV Hondius has been closed for two days after an outbreak of hantavirus was detected on the ship, killing three passengers and suspecting several others to be infected.

Spain’s health ministry said passengers and crew would be examined, treated and later transferred to their home countries once the ship docked. Officials did not specify which port in the Canary Islands would receive the ship.

The government said the decision was based on international law and humanitarian principles, and said Cape Verde lacked the capacity to manage the situation. Spain also noted that the Canary Islands were the nearest location with adequate facilities and that there were many Spanish citizens among those on board.

Welcome to our latest update on the developments surrounding a deadly outbreak of hantavirus aboard a cruise ship now traveling to Spain.

Three passengers aboard the MV Hondius grounded off the coast of Cape Verde have died from a rodent-borne virus.

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