The cruise ship MV Hondius officially departed the Spanish island of Tenerife on Monday, setting a course for the Netherlands after
a harrowing 41-day journey marked by a rare and deadly outbreak of Hantavirus. This departure followed the successful evacuation of the final six passengers—comprising four Australians, a British resident of Australia, and a New Zealander—along with 19 crew members and two physicians. The vessel briefly docked at the Port of Granadilla de Abona to facilitate their disembarkation before continuing its voyage toward Rotterdam. Onboard the departing ship remain 25 crew members, a medical team, and the remains of a German woman who was one of the three fatalities linked to the viral respiratory infection.
This operation concludes a complex and high-stakes public health crisis that began when the ship sailed from southern Argentina. The outbreak claimed the lives of two Dutch passengers and one German national, sparking international concern. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are seven confirmed cases and one probable case associated with the vessel. While a French woman remains in intensive care in stable condition, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus sought to alleviate global fears by clarifying that the situation is fundamentally different from the COVID-19 pandemic. Hantavirus, typically transmitted via wild rodents, only spreads between humans in exceptionally rare cases of close contact, making the general public risk relatively low.
The evacuation process was fraught with logistical hurdles and environmental challenges. Regional authorities in the Canary Islands initially refused the ship permission to dock, insisting it remain at sea. Furthermore, heavy winds and high swells on Monday hampered initial attempts to transfer passengers via shuttle boats, eventually forcing the vessel to moor at the pier to ensure a safe exit for those remaining. The evacuated group was transported via chartered flights to Eindhoven, where they are expected to undergo a mandatory quarantine period before their final repatriation. The ship’s operator, Oceanwide Expeditions, stated that the MV Hondius is projected to arrive in Rotterdam on the evening of Sunday, May 17, 2026. This final leg marks the end of an extraordinary 41-day maritime ordeal that saw 94 individuals repatriated and a massive international medical intervention to contain a rare pathogen in a confined environment.