The Spanish government said all passengers would remain onboard until aircraft arrive to transport the 14 Spanish citizens on the vessel to Gomez Ulla Military Hospital in Madrid. Spanish Health Minister Monica Garcia said a joint health assessment and evacuation system would be implemented to repatriate all passengers, unless their medical conditions prevent travel.
The MV Hondius, a Dutch-flagged expedition cruise ship, departed from Ushuaia, Argentina, on April 1 and traveled through Antarctica and several remote islands in the South Atlantic. The Hantavirus outbreak onboard triggered an international health alert after three passengers died. Two other passengers are currently being treated at hospitals in Johannesburg, South Africa, and Zurich, Switzerland, while three additional suspected cases have been evacuated to the Netherlands.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said the current leading hypothesis points to the Andes virus strain, a rare type of Hantavirus previously recorded as capable of human-to-human transmission in South America. Samples are currently undergoing genome sequencing in South Africa to identify the exact virus strain.
