Indian crew members evacuated from hantavirus-hit ship

The cruise ship MV Hondius, affected by a hantavirus outbreak, at the port of Granadilla de Abona, in Tenerife, Spain | Photo Credit: REUTERS/Hannah McKay

Two Indian crew members on the MV Hondius have been evacuated to the Netherlands, where there will be quarantined, said a note from the Indian embassy in Madrid, on the hantavirus-hit cruise ship.

The ship carrying 150 people including the two Indian members anchored off the coast of Spain’s Canary Island on Sunday, following protocols from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Spanish authorities, the note said, adding that the Indian members were “healthy and asymptomatic”.

As the ship headed to Tenerlife (Canary Island), following the hanta-virus outbreak, for passengers to embark - WHO’s director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus addressed residents of the island and said, “this is not another COVID. The current public health risk from hantavirus remains low.”  On the repeated mention of an “outbreak”, he said, “memories surface that none of us have fully put to rest. The pain of 2020 is still real, and I do not dismiss it for a single moment.”

Hantaviruses are a group of viruses carried by rodents that can cause severe disease in humans, the WHO said. People usually get infected through contact with infected rodents or their urine, droppings or saliva.

‘Andes strain’

“The virus aboard the MV Hondius is the Andes strain of hantavirus. It is serious. Three people have lost their lives…..The risk to you, living your daily life in Tenerife, is low,” the DG said.

“Right now, there are no symptomatic passengers on board. A WHO expert is on that ship. Medical supplies are in place. Spain’s authorities have prepared a careful, step-by-step plan: passengers will be ferried ashore at the industrial port of Granadilla, far from residential areas, in sealed, guarded vehicles, through a completely cordoned-off corridor, and repatriated directly to their home countries. You will not encounter them. Your families will not encounter them,” he added.

IHR

The WHO’s request to Spain was not made arbitrarily, the DG said, adding it was made in  accordance with the International Health Regulations - the legally binding framework that defines the rights and obligations of countries and the WHO when responding to public health events of international concern. “Under those rules, the nearest port with sufficient medical capacity must be identified to ensure the safety and dignity of those on board. Tenerife met that standard. Spain honoured it,” he added.

“Nearly 150 people from 23 countries have been at sea for weeks, some of them grieving, all of them frightened, all of them longing for home. Tenerife has been chosen because it has the medical capacity, the infrastructure, and the humanity to help them reach safety,” the DG said.

Published on May 11, 2026