SPAIN TAKES ALL MEASURES TO CONTAIN HANTAVIRUS SPREAD AFTER CRUISE SCARE

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Agency Report

Spain on Monday said it had implemented “all necessary measures” to prevent the spread of hantavirus among evacuees from a cruise ship affected by the virus, after French and American nationals tested positive.

A large-scale repatriation operation carried out from the Canary Islands on Sunday evacuated 94 passengers and crew members of 19 different nationalities from the Dutch-flagged MV Hondius, which became the focus of international concern following the deaths of three passengers.

Medical personnel escorted the travellers to an airport in Tenerife under strict monitoring and after comprehensive health screenings.

However, authorities in France and the United States later confirmed positive hantavirus tests involving one evacuee each.

“From the beginning, every measure taken has focused on breaking any possible chain of transmission… all preventive and control protocols have been fully applied,” Spain’s health ministry said in a statement.

According to the ministry, the French patient “began experiencing symptoms during the flight and not while onboard the ship”.

It added that the American citizen who tested positive “did not display symptoms while in Cape Verde”, where the MV Hondius had docked before arriving in the Canary Islands.

“Nevertheless, US authorities opted to treat the case as positive and requested a separate evacuation, which was carried out using a different boat,” the ministry explained.

Two additional repatriation flights to Australia and the Netherlands were scheduled for Monday to complete the evacuation of most of the nearly 150 passengers and crew members.

Following refuelling, the vessel was expected to depart for the Netherlands at 7:00 pm (1800 GMT) with only a minimal crew remaining onboard.

“There are still a few citizens from the Netherlands and Australia, and hopefully the process can even be concluded ahead of schedule,” Spanish minister Angel Victor Torres told public radio station RNE.

There are currently no vaccines or specific treatments for hantavirus, a rare disease commonly transmitted by rodents.

Health authorities have maintained that the threat to global public health remains low and have rejected comparisons with the Covid-19 pandemic.