Hantavirus ship evacuees awaiting replacement aircraft in Canary Islands

Two suspected hantavirus patients evacuated from the cruise ship MV Hondius remained aboard a grounded air ambulance in Spain's Canary Islands on Wednesday while awaiting a replacement aircraft following a technical malfunction, Spain's Health Ministry said, reported Xinhua.

The aircraft had departed from Cape Verde and was originally expected to refuel in the western Moroccan city of Marrakesh en route to Amsterdam. However, according to Spanish media reports, Moroccan authorities did not authorize the landing.

"During the refueling stop, the plane's doctor reported a failure in the patient's electrical support system," Spain's Health Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry added that both patients, including the ship's doctor, remained aboard the aircraft with electrical support provided by the airport while awaiting a replacement plane.

"The patients do not pose a risk to public health and will remain on the tarmac until the situation is resolved," the ministry added.

The evacuation operation is part of the international response to a hantavirus outbreak linked to the Dutch-operated cruise ship MV Hondius.

Earlier, the leader of Spain's Canary Islands regional government, Fernando Clavijo, on Wednesday rejected allowing a cruise ship hit by a deadly hantavirus outbreak to dock in the archipelago, calling for an urgent meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.

Speaking to Spanish media, Clavijo criticized the central government's decision to receive the vessel in the Canary Islands, saying it lacked "technical criteria" and the regional authorities had not received sufficient information to guarantee public safety.

Spanish authorities said strict health and isolation protocols would be implemented upon the ship's arrival, with medical teams handling passenger screening, treatment and repatriation procedures.

Meanwhile, all passengers and crew members aboard the cruise ship MV Hondius linked to a hantavirus outbreak are currently asymptomatic, Spanish Health Minister Monica Garcia said on Wednesday.

Speaking at a press conference on the health situation, Garcia said three suspected hantavirus patients, including the ship's doctor, a British citizen who had been in critical condition, had been evacuated to the Netherlands for treatment.

She said that once the medical evacuation operation is completed, the Dutch-operated expedition cruise ship will dock at the Port of Granadilla in southern Tenerife, near the island's airport.

Spanish authorities will set up a medical evacuation and repatriation mechanism for passengers upon arrival, Garcia said.

"Unless their medical condition prevents it, all passengers will be repatriated to their countries through a civil protection mechanism," she said.

Regarding the 14 Spanish nationals on board, Garcia said they would undergo medical examinations before being transported to Madrid aboard a military aircraft for quarantine at the Gomez Ulla military hospital.

1 hospitalized with hantavirus in Switzerland after cruise trip

Swiss health authorities said Wednesday that one person infected with hantavirus is being treated at the University Hospital Zurich (USZ) after returning from a cruise trip to South America linked to multiple hantavirus cases.

The patient, a man who returned to Switzerland with his wife at the end of April, tested positive for the Andes virus, a hantavirus strain found in South America, the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) said in a statement.

After developing symptoms, the man contacted his general practitioner and was referred to USZ, where he was immediately placed in isolation. Laboratory testing conducted at the Geneva University Hospitals confirmed the infection.

Swiss authorities said the hospital is fully equipped to treat the patient and ensure the safety of medical staff and other patients. The FOPH assessed the risk to the Swiss public as low.

Unlike European hantaviruses, which are typically transmitted through contact with excretions from infected rodents, the Andes virus has in rare cases been transmitted from person to person through close contact.

The patient's wife, who traveled with him, has not shown symptoms but is self-isolating as a precaution. Cantonal authorities are tracing potential contacts during the infectious period.

The FOPH said it remains in close coordination with relevant agencies and is monitoring the situation closely.

Hantavirus fever is rare in Switzerland, with between zero and six cases reported annually in recent years, most linked to infections acquired abroad.

The World Health Organization said on May 2 that passengers aboard the cruise ship Hundius sailing in the Atlantic Ocean had experienced severe acute respiratory illness, resulting in deaths. The deadly disease outbreak has triggered an international public health response.

Cabo Verde evacuates 3 suspected hantavirus patients

Cabo Verde on Wednesday carried out an air evacuation of three passengers suspected of hantavirus infection from the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius, which had been anchored off the capital, Praia.

The evacuation was conducted under strict security and health protocols, with personnel from the national police and public health services deployed from the Port of Praia to Nelson Mandela International Airport on Santiago Island.

The three passengers were transferred by air ambulance, with the two aircraft departing at 10:55 a.m. local time (1155 GMT) in quick succession.

According to the World Health Organization, the patients would be transported to the Netherlands for specialized treatment.

Authorities in Cabo Verde said they are continuing to monitor the situation related to the vessel and have maintained preventive and control measures.

The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it is closely tracking reports of the new cluster of hantavirus infections, as countries in Africa and beyond initiate a coordinated international response.