Spanish Islands Reject Hantavirus-Stricken Ship As Latest Patient Is Admitted To Hospital

(SeaPRwire) –   The president of the Canary Islands has stated that he will not permit passengers from a cruise ship experiencing a deadly hantavirus outbreak to disembark on the Spanish-owned archipelago, challenging plans announced by the country’s prime minister to allow the vessel to dock. Fernando Clavijo, the leader of the islands located just over 60 miles off the Moroccan coast, declared on Wednesday that he would not “endanger the safety of the Canary Islands population” by allowing crew and passengers aboard the MV Hondius to undergo medical examinations if the ship were to arrive.

A deadly outbreak of the rodent-borne virus on the cruise ship, which carries 149 people, has resulted in eight individuals contracting the illness so far, with three confirmed through laboratory testing, as reported by the World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday. Three fatalities have occurred among those infected.

On Wednesday, authorities announced that a French national who was not aboard the ship but had shared a flight with an infected passenger had also contracted the virus. The latest patient “reported himself to a hospital in Zurich, Switzerland, where he is receiving treatment,” the WHO added. The Swiss Public Health Office confirmed that the individual had traveled to South America at the end of April and subsequently tested positive for the Andes strain of the virus.

Hantavirus is primarily transmitted through contact with the urine, droppings, or saliva of rats or mice, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In rare instances, it can also spread via scratches or bites from rodents.

The virus typically does not transmit between humans, but the Andes strain, a variant within the hantavirus family, can spread through respiratory droplets among close contacts, experts have informed TIME.

The health ministry initially authorized the ship to dock

Clavijo’s decision contradicts Tuesday’s announcement from Spain’s Health Ministry, which stated that the ship’s arrival would proceed. “Spain bears a moral and legal obligation to assist these individuals, including several Spanish citizens,” the ministry said. “Crew and passengers will be thoroughly examined, cared for, and repatriated to their home countries.”

However, Clavijo rejected this position, asserting in an interview with Spanish radio COPE that it diverged from what was discussed during a technical meeting on Tuesday, when health officials from the Canary Islands agreed the vessel should not dock in the region.

The regional president explained that the original plan was “to evacuate hantavirus patients via air ambulance, while the remaining individuals would stay on board and be transported to the Netherlands, the country of origin for the vessel.”

He further emphasized: “I cannot allow the ship to enter the Canary Islands.”

Oceanwide Expeditions, the operator of the MV Hondius, stated on Wednesday that the vessel’s intended destination after its stop in Cape Verde remained the Canary Islands.

On Wednesday, three passengers suspected of having hantavirus were evacuated from the cruise ship in Cape Verde and are now en route to the Netherlands for medical care. WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus confirmed this development, adding that the overall public health risk remains low. A team of medical personnel wearing hazmat suits was observed conducting the evacuation, transferring the patients from the ship to a smaller boat, which then returned to port in Praia, the capital city.

The Dutch foreign ministry has identified the three patients as a 56-year-old British national, a 41-year-old Dutch national, and a 65-year-old German.

Clavijo argued that medical examinations in the Canary Islands could instead take place in Cape Verde, where the ship was located as of Wednesday morning. “Why subject these passengers to a three-day journey to the Canary Islands when the same procedure can be carried out here?” he questioned COPE.

The regional president has also requested an “urgent” meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to address the disagreement. “I am not going to recklessly jeopardize the safety of the Canary Islands population with a government that is acting disloyally,” Clavijo stated.

TIME has contacted the Spanish government for comment.

Who has died from hantavirus and who is infected?

As confirmed by the WHO, there are eight known cases, though only three have been confirmed through laboratory testing. Three of those infected have died. The first fatality was a Dutch national who passed away on April 11; the cause of death could not be determined while onboard the ship, according to Oceanwide Expeditions. On April 27, Oceanwide Expeditions reported being informed that the deceased’s wife had also died after disembarking the ship with her husband’s body. On May 2, a German national aboard the vessel succumbed to the disease.

A British national reportedly became seriously ill and was evacuated to receive medical treatment in South Africa. The patient is currently in intensive care but is showing signs of improvement, Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove of the WHO stated on Tuesday.