Evacuation flights leave Tenerife after cruise ship outbreak

A luxury cruise ship docked in Tenerife faced a hantavirus outbreak, prompting evacuations of passengers and crew to their home countries. Spanish and French nationals were flown to Madrid and Paris yesterday, with one French passenger developing symptoms during the repatriation flight. Additional flights to Canada, the Netherlands, Türkiye, the UK, Ireland, and the US departed by 1830 GMT yesterday, with final flights leaving today by 1900 local time. Passengers will undergo testing upon arrival and either be hospitalized or quarantined for 42 days, as recommended by the WHO. The WHO advised daily health checks for 42 days, noting the virus’s incubation period can last up to six weeks. Spain will hospitalize passengers for the full quarantine, while France will hospitalize them for 72 hours before allowing self-isolation for 45 days. The virus, typically spread by rodents but rarely person-to-person, was first detected in Johannesburg in May 2024 after a British man fell ill. Three deaths—two Dutch nationals and a German—have been confirmed among eight infected passengers, with four still hospitalized in South Africa, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. A suspected case in Tristan da Cunha, a British territory, is being treated by a UK military-medical team. Health officials emphasized the virus is far less contagious than COVID-19, with no evidence of rodent presence on the ship. The cruise ship, originally bound for Spain from Cape Verde, will sail to the Netherlands tonight for disinfection, while 30 crew members remain on board. Passengers were transported from the ship to Tenerife airport in military buses to avoid public contact. Turkish passenger Emin Yogurtcuoglu expressed relief at being symptom-free, hoping for a smooth quarantine process. The WHO and EU coordinated the evacuation, with passengers isolated per national protocols to prevent further spread.