Hantavirus-stricken cruise ship arrives at Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands

The hantavirus-stricken cruise ship MV Hondius is seen at anchor after arriving at the port of Granadilla in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain, Sunday, May 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

2026-05-10T06:08:47Z

TENERIFE, Spain (AP) — A hantavirus-stricken cruise ship with more than 140 people on board has arrived at Tenerife, the largest of Spain’s Canary Islands,off the coast of West Africa, where the passengers and some of the crew are to disembark.

The World Health Organization, Spanish authorities and cruise company Oceanwide Expeditions have said that nobody on board the MV Hondius is currently showing symptoms of the virus. Three people have died since the outbreak, and five passengers who left the ship are infected with hantavirus, which can cause life-threatening illness.

As a hantavirus-stricken cruise ship is set to arrive at Granadilla port in Tenerife, Spain on Sunday morning, the WHO, Spanish authorities and cruise company Oceanwide Expedition are coordinating the disembarkation of passengers and some crew on ground.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, along with Spain’s health and interior ministers, were to be supervising the evacuation of the ship. Authorities have said the passengers and crew members who will disembark will have no contact with the local population, and will only be taken off the ship once evacuation flights are ready to fly them to their destinations.