Hantavirus-hit cruise ship to arrive in Tenerife today; WHO head chief reaches Spanish island

Passengers and immoderate unit members aboard the hantavirus-hit Dutch-flagged MV Hondius volition statesman disembarkation from astir 07.00 GMT connected Sunday aft the vessel arrives successful Tenerife, cruise relation Oceanwide Expeditions said connected Saturday.The institution said the vessel was expected to get successful Granadilla, Tenerife, astatine 04.30 GMT and that those leaving the vas “will beryllium transferred instantly to their allocated aircraft.”WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is expected to assistance coordinate the evacuation cognition disconnected Tenerife. He told the radical of Tenerife that the hazard to them from the virus-hit vessel was "low"."I request you to perceive maine clearly: this is not different Covid," Ghebreyesus wrote successful an unfastened missive to the radical of the Spanish island, adding, "The existent nationalist wellness hazard from hantavirus remains low."Spanish Health Minister Monica Garcia Gomez said, "Neither the luggage nor the assemblage of the deceased idiosyncratic volition beryllium disembarked successful the Canary Islands - they volition stay connected committee with portion of the crew," arsenic quoted by AFP.

People from much than 20 nationalities are presently connected committee the ship.The World Health Organisation, Spanish authorities and Oceanwide said connected Saturday that nary 1 presently aboard the vas is showing symptoms of the virus.

Three passengers, a Dutch hubby and woman and a German woman, person died since the outbreak began, portion 5 passengers who had already near the vessel were aboriginal confirmed to beryllium infected with hantavirus.Health authorities confirmed that the Andes virus, the lone hantavirus strain known to dispersed from idiosyncratic to idiosyncratic successful uncommon cases, had been detected among infected passengers, fuelling planetary concern.

Hantavirus is usually dispersed done inhalation of contaminated rodent droppings, and symptoms tin look betwixt 1 and 8 weeks aft exposure.Dutch officials and the ship’s relation said that connected April 24, astir 2 weeks aft the archetypal rider died connected board, much than 2 twelve radical from astatine slightest 12 countries near the vessel without interaction tracing.Health authorities archetypal confirmed hantavirus successful a rider connected May 2.