MADRID: A Spaniard placed under quarantine after partaking in a cruise hit by a deadly hantavirus outbreak has tested positive, the Spanish ministry of health said on Monday.&nbsp;&quot;The patient was transferred to a high-level isolation unit in the Gomez Ulla hospital, where he will remain hospitalised,&quot; the ministry said in a statement.&nbsp;&quot;This does not change the level of the risk for the general population and does not change the measures of the current epidemiological response,&quot; it said.&nbsp;It is the second confirmed case of the hantavirus in Spain.&nbsp;The hantavirus outbreak occurred on a Dutch-flagged ship MV Hondius that set off April 1 from Ushuaia, Argentina, taking in remote islands in the South Atlantic Ocean before heading north to Cape Verde, then Tenerife in Spain&#39;s Canary Islands, where remaining passengers were evacuated.&nbsp;The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Saturday that 12 suspected and confirmed cases have been reported to the UN agency, including three deaths, and that no deaths have been reported since May 2.&nbsp;Spread by rodents, hantavirus is a rare virus for which no vaccines or specific treatments exist.

Europe

Spain confirms a second hantavirus case in a quarantined cruise passenger from the MV Hondius outbreak. The rodent-borne virus has no vaccine or specific treatment, while public risk remains low.

Quarantined Spaniard tests positive for hantavirus: health ministry

ROTTERDAM (NETHERLANDS): The cruise ship that sparked global alarm after a deadly outbreak of hantavirus made its final approach to Rotterdam today (Monday), with the remaining skeleton crew facing weeks of quarantine. The MV Hondius is expected to dock in the Dutch port before midday (1000 GMT), according to officials, before disembarking the remaining 27 people on board, including 25 crew and two medical staff. AFP reporters on board a separate vessel caught sight of the ship as it steamed towards Rotterdam, Europe&#39;s biggest port, for final docking and disinfection. The ship, operated by Dutch company Oceanwide Expeditions, made headlines after three passengers died from hantavirus, a rare virus for which no vaccines nor specific treatments exist. The World Health Organization (WHO) has scrambled to reassure the world that the outbreak was not a repeat of the Covid pandemic, stressing that contagion was very rare. &quot;There is no sign that we are seeing the start of a larger outbreak,&quot; WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters on May 12. However, the virus has an incubation period of several weeks, meaning more cases from the ship&#39;s occupants could emerge in the future, Tedros warned. Hantavirus has been confirmed in seven patients, with one other probable case, according to an AFP tally from official sources. The most recent positive test came from Canada in a patient who was onboard the Hondius, officials said late Sunday. Andes strainThe people disembarking on Monday comprise 17 from the Philippines, four from the Netherlands (two crew and two medical staff), four from Ukraine, one from Russia, and one from Poland. Some of them will stay in quarantine facilities at the port, while others will self-isolate at home. Also on board is the body of a German woman who died during the voyage. After docking, the ship will undergo thorough cleaning and disinfection procedures, according to the operator. The MV Hondius&#39;s voyage began on April 1 in Ushuaia, Argentina, taking in some remote islands in the South Atlantic Ocean before steaming north to Cape Verde. The trip was supposed to finish there, but the ship eventually sailed to Tenerife in the Canary Islands for the evacuations by plane. The MV Hondius presented diplomatic challenges as different countries negotiated over who would receive it and treat its passengers. Cape Verde refused to take the ship, which remained anchored offshore of the capital Praia as three people were evacuated to Europe by air. Spain allowed the vessel to anchor off its Canary Islands for the evacuation of passengers and crew, but the Atlantic archipelago&#39;s regional government fiercely opposed the measure. Hantavirus spreads from the urine, faeces, and saliva of infected rodents and is endemic in Argentina, where the voyage began. Those infected have the Andes virus, the only strain of hantavirus that can spread between people. Kiki Hirschfeldt, a spokeswoman for the operator, said it was too early to say what impact the outbreak could have on the appetite for cruises. &quot;I mean, for as far as we know right now, the virus was brought on board, and that can happen in a hotel, in an airplane, in a boat,&quot; she told AFP.

The MV Hondius docked in Rotterdam after a deadly hantavirus outbreak killed three passengers. Remaining crew entered quarantine as WHO reassured the public the rare virus posed no global threat.

Hantavirus-hit cruise ship to dock in Rotterdam at voyage end

GENEVA: World Health Organization member states gather for their annual meeting in Geneva on Monday amid concern over deadly hantavirus and Ebola outbreaks and uncertainty over announced US and Argentinian withdrawals. While the rare hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship that has gripped global attention is not officially on the agenda, it is expected to feature prominently in the discussions, as is the fresh Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. A diplomatic source, who asked not to be identified, said it would be interesting to see how such outbreaks are used by the WHO &quot;to promote other things&quot;, including &quot;to pressure (the United States and Argentina) not to go&quot;. The meeting of the WHO&#39;s annual decision-making assembly, which runs through Saturday, comes after a difficult year for the organization. It has been weakened by the announced US withdrawal and by funding cuts that have forced it to slash its budget and staff numbers. &quot;We are stable now and moving forward,&quot; WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus insisted at the end of April. Diplomats and observers agreed. The situation is &quot;still fragile, but they&#39;ve been successful in mobilizing most of the funds&quot; required for the next two years, Surie Moon, co-director of the Global Health Centre at the Geneva Graduate Institute, told AFP. And the hantavirus crisis provided &quot;a clear illustration of why the world needs an effective, trusted, impartial, reliably-funded WHO&quot;, she added. UN, Argentina withdrawalsBut significant divisions persist. Continued disagreement between wealthy and developing nations has, for instance, blocked progress on the key missing piece of the WHO&#39;s landmark 2025 pandemic treaty, with negotiations now expected to be extended for another year. It also remains unclear what, if anything, would be decided on the US and Argentine announced withdrawals. US President Donald Trump, on his first day back in office in January 2025, handed the WHO his country&#39;s one-year withdrawal notice, with Argentina soon following suit. The WHO, whose constitution does not include a withdrawal clause, has not confirmed either withdrawal. The United States reserved the right to withdraw when it joined the WHO in 1948 -- on condition of giving one year&#39;s notice and meeting its financial obligations in full for that fiscal year. While the notice period has expired, Washington has still not paid its 2024 or 2025 dues, owing around $260 million. When the WHO&#39;s executive board met in January, Israel submitted a resolution to approve Argentina&#39;s withdrawal -- something countries are expected to discuss during the assembly -- but not a word was said about the US leaving. Diplomats and observers indicated there was broad agreement that it would be better to maintain a grey zone around whether the US was effectively out. &quot;We hope that it will go past quietly on the US,&quot; a European diplomat said on condition of anonymity. Election campaign&nbsp;The assembly will take place as the process towards next year&#39;s election of a new WHO chief heats up. No one has yet declared their candidacy, but announcements are possible this week ahead of the nomination deadline of September 24. A number of sensitive resolutions are also on the table, including on Ukraine, the Palestinian territories, and Iran, which could spark heated debate. Much of this week&#39;s discussions will centre on whether to launch a formal reform process for the so-called &quot;global health architecture&quot; -- a mishmash of organizations that do not always work together and often overlap. &quot;Among the issues to be explored are what is best done at the global and regional levels... and what is a national responsibility?&quot; Helen Clark, co-chair of The Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response and a former New Zealand prime minister, told AFP. Canadian Health Minister Marjorie Michel told AFP that &quot;this current crisis, with the departure of key players, also allows ... the WHO to re-examine its strategy with its members&quot;. A key focus will be to ensure the process does not see &quot;controversial&quot; issues, such as climate and sexual and reproductive health rights, sacrificed in the context of dwindling international aid funding. &quot;The objective is to ensure better coordination among health actors, so that no activities or populations are left behind,&quot; said a diplomatic source, who asked not to be named. But Thiru Balasubramaniam of the Knowledge Ecology International NGO, told AFP the WHO had already &quot;scaled down some of their activities, including in terms of sexual and reproductive health&quot;.

Germany's Health Minister Nina Warken speaks to a journalist after a meeting with World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General ahead of the 79th World Health Assembly in Geneva, on May 17, 2026. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)

Americas

WHO member states meet in Geneva amid global concern over hantavirus and Ebola outbreaks, funding strains following announced US and Argentine withdrawals, and renewed debate over reforming the global health system, pandemic preparedness, and coordination among international health actors.

WHO kicks off annual assembly amid hantavirus, Ebola crises

MONTREAL: A Canadian who was aboard the cruise ship MV Hondius has tested positive for the Andes hantavirus, public health officials said on Sunday. The patient was one of four Canadians aboard the hantavirus-stricken vessel, which set sail on April 1 from Argentina on a course across the Atlantic Ocean until the outbreak of the rare rodent-carried disease. &quot;One individual&#39;s sample was confirmed positive for hantavirus on May 16,&quot; a statement from the Public Health Agency of Canada said Sunday. &quot;A second individual who was a travelling partner of the confirmed case was confirmed negative&quot; by the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, it said. No further cases have been identified, the agency said. &quot;The overall risk to the general population in Canada from the Andes hantavirus outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship remains low at this time,&quot; the agency stressed. The Andes strain of hantavirus is the only one known to spread between people. Globally, the death toll remains at three. No vaccines or specific treatments for hantavirus exist, but health officials have dismissed comparisons to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Andes strain of hantavirus is the only one known to spread between people; globally, the death toll remains at three; no vaccines or specific treatments for hantavirus exist, but health officials have dismissed comparisons to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Canadian cruise passenger confirmed positive for hantavirus

MONTREAL: Canadian public health officials said Saturday a &quot;high risk&quot; passenger who was aboard the cruise ship MV Hondius tested &quot;presumptive positive&quot; for the Andes hantavirus.&nbsp;The patient was one of four Canadians aboard the hantavirus-stricken vessel, which set sail on April 1 from Argentina on a course across the Atlantic Ocean until the outbreak of the rare rodent-carried disease.&nbsp;The Public Health Agency of Canada said in a statement that officials from the western province of British Columbia &quot;reported that one of the four high-risk individuals who was self-isolating and being monitored for symptoms has tested presumptive positive for Andes hantavirus.&quot;&nbsp;The Andes strain of hantavirus is the only one known to spread between people.&nbsp;Globally, the death toll remains at three.&nbsp;The patient and their spouse, who reported minor symptoms, were transported to a hospital on Friday, where they will remain in isolation, officials said.&nbsp;&quot;Out of an abundance of caution, a third individual who was in secure lodging for isolation has been transferred to hospital for assessment and testing,&quot; the statement said.&nbsp;Results of tests to confirm hantavirus infection were expected in the next couple of days.&nbsp;&quot;The overall risk to the general population in Canada from the Andes hantavirus outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship remains low at this time,&quot; the public health agency stressed.&nbsp;No vaccines or specific treatments for hantavirus exist, but health officials have dismissed comparisons to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Canadian officials report a cruise passenger from the MV Hondius tested presumptive positive for Andes hantavirus. Three deaths have been reported globally, while authorities say the overall public risk in Canada remains low.

Canada cruise passenger 'presumptive positive' for hantavirus

SYDNEY: Six passengers caught up in the MV Hondius hantavirus outbreak will land Friday in Australia to start one of the strictest quarantines &quot;anywhere in the world,&quot; Health Minister Mark Butler said. The six travelers &mdash; four Australians, a Briton living in Australia, and a New Zealander &mdash; tested negative before boarding the charter flight and would be &quot;tested immediately&quot; after it lands in Western Australia around lunchtime (0200 GMT), Butler said. They will then be shuttled off to a purpose-built quarantine facility on the outskirts of Perth city. &quot;They will be there for at least three weeks,&quot; Butler told national broadcaster ABC. &quot;They are on their way back, and they will be subject to one of the strongest quarantine arrangements you will see anywhere in the world.&quot; The plane left the Netherlands on Thursday, with all on board required to wear personal protective equipment. The 500-bed facility was purpose-built for returning travelers during the Covid-19 pandemic, but has hardly been used. Three people died after the rare rat-borne virus spread through passengers holidaying on the MV Hondius cruise ship, sparking a global health scare. The ship set sail from Argentina on April 1, charting a course across the Atlantic Ocean. No vaccines or specific treatments exist for the virus, but health officials have said the risk to the public is low and have dismissed comparisons to the Covid-19 pandemic. Australia has yet to determine how to handle the passengers after the initial three-week quarantine, given the virus&#39; potential incubation period of 42 days.

Natural Disaster

Health minister says the six travelers tested negative before boarding the charter flight and will be "tested immediately" after it lands in Western Australia around lunchtime.

Six hantavirus cruise passengers to start quarantine in Australia

GENEVA: Eight people infected in the hantavirus outbreak aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship have tested positive for the Andes virus, the only strain transmitted between humans, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Wednesday. &quot;Eight cases were laboratory-confirmed for Andes virus (ANDV) <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/argentinas-deadly-hantavirus-memories-resurface-after-cruise-ship-outbreak" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">infection</a>, two are probable, and one&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/france-locks-down-1700-on-cruise-ship-after-90yearold-dies" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">case</a> remains inconclusive and undergoing further testing,&quot; the UN health agency said in its latest update on the outbreak. Three deaths&nbsp;Three people from the ship have died since it set sail from Argentina on April 1 for a cruise across the Atlantic Ocean. Two of the victims had confirmed Andes virus infections, and the third is listed as a &quot;probable&quot; case, according to the WHO. Hantavirus typically spreads from the urine, faeces and saliva of infected rodents. There are no vaccines or specific treatments for the rare disease. All known cases in the current outbreak were people aboard the cruise ship. &#39;Inconclusive&#39; case&nbsp;The case listed as inconclusive is an American passenger repatriated to the United States, who is &quot;currently asymptomatic&quot; and undergoing further testing after one positive and one negative result, the WHO said. It maintained its assessment of the public-health risk from the outbreak at &quot;moderate&quot; for those who were on the ship and &quot;low&quot; for the rest of the world. The origin of the outbreak is still unknown. The WHO says the original infection happened before the cruise, because the first victim, a 70-year-old Dutch man, started showing symptoms on April 6, while the virus&#39; incubation period is one to six weeks.

Three people from the ship have died since it set sail from Argentina on April 1 for a cruise across the Atlantic Ocean.

WHO confirms eight cases of Andes hantavirus in outbreak

EINDHOVEN: The last two evacuation planes carrying passengers and crew from the hantavirus-hit ship MV Hondius landed in the Netherlands Tuesday, according to an AFP journalist. Traveling in the two planes were 28 evacuees from the ship, according to the Dutch foreign ministry, including passengers, crew, and medical staff. The first plane to land was transporting six former guests of the Hondius, four from Australia, one from New Zealand, and one British person who lives in Australia. These six are expected to stay in a quarantine facility close to the airport before being repatriated to Australia. Wearing white medical overalls and facemasks, they disembarked from the air ambulance, clutching white bags of their belongings, and walked into the terminal. The other plane was carrying 19 crew members, one British doctor, and two epidemiologists (one from the World Health Organization and one from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control). These crew members disembarked without medical gear but still wearing masks, also carrying large white sacks of their belongings. The Hondius is already steaming its way from Tenerife to Rotterdam in the Netherlands, where it will dock for disinfection. Still onboard are 25 crew and two medical staff, operator Oceanwide Expeditions said on Monday. The vessel is also carrying the body of a German passenger who died during the voyage.

This photograph shows a person in a white hazmat suit disembarking a Bombardier Challenger 605 medical aircraft allegedly carrying some of the passengers believed to be infected with hantavirus from the cruise ship MV Hondius, before being escorted to an 

The first plane to land was transporting six former guests of the Hondius, four from Australia, one from New Zealand, and one British person who lives in Australia.

Last evacuation flights from hantavirus ship land in Netherlands

PARIS: Here is a roundup of which countries have confirmed or probable cases of nationals infected by hantavirus after the outbreak on the cruise ship MV Hondius, according to the World Health Organization. Eight cases have been confirmed and two are listed as &quot;probable&quot;, according to the UN&#39;s top health body and certain national health authorities, with citizens of six countries affected. Three people have died, with two of those confirmed as having hantavirus and one probable case. Other suspected cases and potential close contacts of infected people are being investigated, according to health authorities. NetherlandsTwo Dutch people from the ship have died from the virus and one has been confirmed to have contracted the virus. A Dutch couple who had travelled around South America before boarding the ship in Ushuaia, Argentina on April 1 were the first fatalities. The husband, 70, showed symptoms on April 6 and died on April 11. His body was taken off the ship during its April 22-24 call at Saint Helena, an island in the south Atlantic. No hantavirus test was carried out and he is considered a &quot;probable case&quot;, according to the WHO. His 69-year-old wife also left the ship at Saint Helena, feeling unwell. Her health deteriorated during an April 25 flight to Johannesburg and she died in hospital a day later, with hantavirus confirmed on May 4. The third Dutch case was the ship&#39;s doctor, who reported symptoms on April 30. A test showed him positive for the Andes strain of the virus on May 6. He was evacuated to the Netherlands the same day after the ship stopped off Cape Verde, and was stable while being treated in isolation. BritainTwo British nationals have been confirmed as infected, and one is classed as a &quot;probable&quot; case. One British man became ill on April 24 with signs of fever and pneumonia and was evacuated three days later from the Atlantic island of Ascension to South Africa, where he was placed in intensive care. Hantavirus was confirmed in his case on May 2 and the Andes strain was confirmed through sequencing. A second British man working as a guide on the ship reported symptoms on April 27 and tested positive on May 6. He was evacuated to the Netherlands on May 7 from Cape Verde and was stable while being treated in isolation. A third British man left the Hondius on April 14 on the South Atlantic Archipelago of Tristan da Cunha and was treated in isolation there. He reported symptoms on April 28. The WHO listed him as a &quot;probable case&quot; pending laboratory results. British paratroopers and medics parachuted onto the island to deliver urgent medical supplies for him, ministers said. GermanyA German woman who had a fever on April 28 and later developed pneumonia died on May 2 on board the ship. A post-mortem sample was sent to the Netherlands with the evacuated patients, where tests confirmed infection by the Andes virus. Her body remained on board the Hondius, which was due to leave for the Netherlands from the Spanish island of Tenerife late Monday. SwitzerlandA Swiss man disembarked from the Hondius in St Helena on April 22 and flew to Switzerland on April 27 via South Africa and Qatar. He started suffering symptoms on May 1 after arrival in Switzerland. He was treated in isolation and tested positive for the Andes virus on May 5. FranceA French woman repatriated from the Hondius felt unwell late on May 10 and tested positive for hantavirus, France&#39;s Health Minister Stephanie Rist said. United StatesOne of 17 American citizens repatriated from the ship tested &quot;mildly PCR positive&quot; for the virus, while another had &quot;mild symptoms&quot;, the US Department of Health and Human Services said on May 10.

Eight cases have been confirmed, and two are listed as "probable", according to the UN's top health body and certain national health authorities, with citizens of six countries affected.

Hantavirus: What we know about confirmed cases by nationality

WASHINGTON: The United States said Friday it was organizing an evacuation flight for Americans on a hantavirus-struck cruise ship that has sailed to the Canary Islands. &quot;The Department of State is arranging a repatriation flight to support the safe return of American passengers on this ship,&quot; a State Department spokesperson said. The State Department said it was coordinating with the Spanish government as well as other US federal agencies. &quot;We are in direct communication with Americans on board and are prepared to provide consular assistance as soon as the ship arrives in Tenerife, Spain,&quot; the spokesperson said on customary condition of anonymity. It was not immediately clear how many Americans were on the ship. The World Health Organization said earlier that the United States was among 12 countries which had nationals who disembarked the ship at Saint Helena.

US arranges evacuation flight for Americans aboard hantavirus-hit cruise ship headed to Canary Islands

Articles tagged with "Hantavirus"

Quarantined Spaniard tests positive for hantavirus: health ministry

Hantavirus-hit cruise ship to dock in Rotterdam at voyage end

WHO kicks off annual assembly amid hantavirus, Ebola crises

Canadian cruise passenger confirmed positive for hantavirus

Canada cruise passenger 'presumptive positive' for hantavirus

Six hantavirus cruise passengers to start quarantine in Australia

WHO confirms eight cases of Andes hantavirus in outbreak

Last evacuation flights from hantavirus ship land in Netherlands

Hantavirus: What we know about confirmed cases by nationality

US plans evacuation flight for Americans on hantavirus ship

Quarantined Spaniard tests positive for hantavirus: health ministry