Spain has allowed the cruise ship “Hondius,” which was affected by hantavirus cases, to call at a port in the Canary Islands.
May 6, 2026, 3:59 amMay 6, 2026, 3:59 am
The Ministry of Health in Madrid announced that this decision was made in coordination with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the EU in accordance with international law and humanitarian principles. The affected small cruise ship with a total of almost 150 people on board had set off from the south of Argentina and is currently anchored off Cape Verde.
The “Hondius” is allowed to enter Spain.Image: keystone
The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) is closely examining the ship to determine which people urgently need to be evacuated from Cape Verde, the ministry said. The remaining passengers will take the cruise ship to the Canary Islands, where they are expected to arrive within three to four days.
Canary Islands are the closest place with capacity for help
The World Health Organization has declared that Cape Verde – a small island state off West Africa – cannot carry out this operation itself, the Spanish ministry emphasized. The Canary Islands are therefore the closest place with the necessary capacity. Spain has a moral and legal obligation to help these people; including several Spanish citizens.
That’s why the government in Madrid has also agreed that the doctor from the “Hondius”, who is in critical condition, will be flown to the Canary Islands on a hospital plane in the coming hours, the Ministry of Health said.
The exact port on the Canary Islands off the west coast of North Africa that the cruise ship will call at has not yet been determined. Once there, the crew and passengers should be examined, provided with medical care if necessary and returned to their respective home countries, the ministry said in a statement.
So far, three passengers on the Dutch-flagged “Hondius” have died, an elderly Dutch couple and a person from Germany, who, according to ship operator Oceanwide Expeditions, is a woman. The WHO is currently assuming a total of seven cases of the disease.
Three infected people are to be flown to the Netherlands
The Dutch Foreign Ministry had previously announced that three sick people should be taken off board the “Hondius” and flown to the Netherlands. One of them is a Dutchman. This should happen “as quickly as possible,” said the ministry.
The WHO suspects that the chain of infection started from the now deceased Dutch couple, who may have been infected on land before embarking in Argentina. (sda/dpa)