Javier Padilla, Spain's Secretary of State for health, said on social media on Sunday that the evacuation of passengers and some crew members from the hantavirus-hit cruise ship MV Hondius has been underway as planned, with more than 90 people expected to be evacuated by the end of the day, reported Xinhua.
According to a video released by the official X account of the Spanish Interior Ministry's General Secretariat for Civil Protection and Emergencies, 49 passengers and crew members from 14 different countries had been evacuated by Sunday afternoon since the operation began.
Padilla said passengers and crew members from Britain, Turkey, France, Ireland and the United States would continue to be evacuated later on Sunday, with the total number of evacuees expected to exceed 90 by the end of the day.
Spanish authorities launched an operation on Sunday to evacuate and transfer all passengers and part of the crew aboard the hantavirus-hit cruise ship MV Hondius.
Earlier, the vessel anchored off the Port of Granadilla on the Spanish island of Tenerife.
Personnel from Spain's External Health Service, or Sanidad Exterior, later boarded the vessel to carry out epidemiological investigations and health assessments.
Later in the morning, the first group of passengers began disembarking and were transferred ashore as part of the evacuation operation.
Speaking at a press conference held at the scene, Spanish Health Minister Monica Garcia said the evacuation operation would begin with the 14 Spanish nationals aboard the vessel. All passengers and part of the crew would leave the ship in groups aboard zodiac boats before being transferred by buses under strict sanitary and security measures to Tenerife South Airport for onward transportation arrangements.
The cruise ship is not expected to dock at the port during the operation, and "everything is going according to plan," Garcia said.
Despite the complexity of coordination and public health control measures, the operation had been "generally successful," she said, noting that no one aboard the vessel had shown symptoms before the evacuation process began.
Under Spain's emergency deployment plan, the country's Military Emergencies Unit dispatched buses equipped with sanitary protection measures to assist with the transfers, while the Civil Guard participated in on-site security and coordination efforts. Health authorities, emergency services and police forces from the Canary Islands also took part in the joint operation.
According to Garcia, Spanish citizens would be evacuated first, followed by Dutch nationals and passengers from Germany, Belgium and Greece, as well as part of the crew, under arrangements coordinated by the Netherlands. The remaining passengers would depart on different flights scheduled throughout the day.
The final evacuation flight is expected to depart on Monday to transport Australian nationals. The Netherlands also plans to send a so-called "sweep flight" to collect individuals who have not yet been repatriated by their respective countries.
Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska, Minister of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory Angel Victor Torres, and World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus were also in Tenerife to coordinate the evacuation operation.
Airplane carrying 26 passengers from MV Hondius arrives in Netherlands
An airplane carrying passengers and part of the crew from the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius, where the Andes virus was detected, arrived at Eindhoven Air Base in the Netherlands on Sunday evening, the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) confirmed.
The group will be closely monitored and provided with appropriate medical care if needed, as they begin a six-week quarantine period, said the RIVM.
"All repatriated passengers will undergo thorough medical screening. A sample will be taken from everyone at the airport for laboratory testing," RIVM said in a statement on Sunday.
RIVM said the Dutch passengers will be transported directly to their home addresses in specially arranged vans, where they will complete the quarantine period in self-isolation. The quarantine period lasts 42 days and began on May 6, when the patients infected with the Andes virus disembarked from the vessel. During quarantine, passengers must remain at home. They may take short walks outside, provided they maintain at least 1.5 meters distance from others and wear a face mask.
RIVM added that a quarantine hotel has been arranged for crew members and foreign passengers who cannot immediately return home.
The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced earlier Sunday that 26 people were on board the flight, including all eight Dutch nationals and 18 foreign nationals who are from 10 other countries.
Dutch public broadcaster NOS reported that Germany has dispatched a team of firefighters to transport four German nationals in a specially equipped infectious disease ambulance. Two Belgian passengers are being picked up in Eindhoven by a Belgian Defence ambulance and will undergo medical examinations at a hospital in Antwerp before entering home quarantine.
RIVM emphasized that the risk of the Andes virus spreading is significantly lower than that of coronavirus. "Outbreaks are rare worldwide and are generally limited to small groups of people who have had close contact with an infected person." RIVM said.
Meanwhile, the Dutch cruise operator Oceanwide Expeditions said in a statement on Sunday that after all guests and a limited number of crew members disembarked, the vessel would refuel and take on supplies in Santa Cruz, Tenerife.
- MV Hondius
- Hantavirus
- Spain
Source: www.dailyfinland.fi
