WHO Says Hantavirus Outbreak Unlikely to Grow Significantly

(MENAFN) The World Health Organization (WHO) declared Tuesday that the hantavirus outbreak aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship is unlikely to escalate dramatically — though officials warned that further infections among passengers cannot be ruled out.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus disclosed that 11 suspected cases have now been tied to the outbreak on the Dutch-flagged expedition vessel, with nine confirmed and two additional cases expected to test positive. All suspected and confirmed patients have been isolated and placed under active medical supervision, Tedros told a joint press conference with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in Madrid.

"As far as we know, the passengers who disembarked have been located, including one in the remotest place that the UK managed to reach through very difficult operations," he added.

Tedros explained that WHO sought Spain's intervention after the scale of the outbreak "exceeded" the response capacity of Cabo Verde — the nearest country to where the crisis first emerged in the Atlantic Ocean.

Sanchez hailed the sweeping international evacuation and quarantine operation as "a success," revealing that more than 120 passengers of various nationalities had been repatriated across 10 specially arranged flights without a single incident — though he has faced mounting domestic political criticism for permitting the vessel to dock in the Canary Islands.

"We received a call for help," Sanchez said. "This world does not need more selfishness or more fear. What it needs are countries willing to step forward in solidarity."

The MV Hondius outbreak has claimed three lives since late April. The ship docked at Spain's Canary Islands on Sunday, where a multinational operation jointly coordinated by Spain, the WHO, and the European Union oversaw the evacuation of all passengers.

The WHO has mandated a strict 42-day quarantine period for all passengers and close contacts, running from May 10 through June 21.

Complications have also emerged in the Netherlands, where Radboud University Medical Centre (Radboudumc) confirmed Monday that 12 healthcare workers had breached strict safety protocols while treating a patient previously aboard the ship — all of whom are now subject to mandatory quarantine.

In a separate development, Spanish health authorities confirmed Tuesday that one Spanish passenger quarantined in Madrid had developed mild fever and respiratory symptoms after returning a provisional positive test for hantavirus, though officials said his condition remained stable with no signs of clinical deterioration.

Hantavirus is a rare pathogen ordinarily transmitted through contact with infected rodents or their droppings — though the strain at the center of this outbreak is also capable of human-to-human transmission. The WHO warns that the virus carries a fatality rate of up to 40–50%, with the gravest risk concentrated among elderly patients and those with pre-existing conditions.

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