- From the outset, Spain activated international health coordination mechanisms together with the WHO, the ECDC, the European Commission, the Netherlands, South Africa, Cape Verde and the Government of the Canary Islands.
- The three symptomatic cases have been evacuated from the ship. The vessel, which will dock in the port of Granadilla de Abona (Tenerife), is carrying only passengers and crew without symptoms.
- Spanish citizens with habitual residence in Spain will be transferred to the Gómez Ulla Central Defense Hospital in Madrid, where they will undergo quarantine under health supervision.
- The Ministry of Health emphasizes that the risk to the general population is very low and reiterates that interpersonal transmission of Andean hantavirus is extremely rare.
- Spain is acting in compliance with the International Health Regulations and its humanitarian and health protection obligations, especially given the presence of Spanish citizens on board.
Madrid, May 6, 2026 - The Minister of Health appeared at a press conference to report on the situation arising from the hantavirus outbreak detected on the MV Hondius ship, a Dutch vessel from Argentina with an initial destination of Cape Verde after passing through South Africa, in which approximately 150 people of 23 different nationalities are traveling, including 14 Spanish citizens.
The minister explained that the Ministry of Health became aware of the situation last week through international health alert and coordination channels, immediately activating joint monitoring with the World Health Organization (WHO), the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the European Commission, the countries involved and the Government of the Canary Islands.
Since the beginning of the crisis, there has been constant coordination between all the administrations and institutions involved. The minister noted that she has been in continuous contact with the president of the Canary Islands government, Fernando Clavijo, while the Secretary of State for Health, the Directorate General of Public Health, Foreign Health, and the technical teams have worked in coordination with their regional and international counterparts to share information, assess risks, and prepare the health response.
Current epidemiological situation
According to updated information, the outbreak currently has eight linked cases, of which three have been confirmed by laboratory testing.
- Three deaths (one confirmed by laboratory test).
- A patient admitted to a hospital in Switzerland with a positive test (he disembarked from the ship in Saint Helena)
- Another patient in ICU in South Africa (the third with a diagnosis)
- Three symptomatic patients have already been evacuated by plane from Cape Verde to Amsterdam (one of them is the doctor)
Formal request for collaboration from the WHO
During the appearance, the minister explained that yesterday afternoon a meeting took place between the technical teams of the Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization, in which it was agreed to send a team of international epidemiologists to review the health situation of the ship in Cape Verde.
Subsequently, the WHO stated that Cape Verde does not currently have the necessary capabilities to independently carry out all the epidemiological, environmental and public health assessments required to manage a health incident of this nature.
In light of this situation, the WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, formally requested the collaboration of the Spanish State to facilitate the arrival of the MV Hondius and to carry out the necessary health actions under international coordination.
The minister stressed that Spain's actions respond both to humanitarian principles and to international legal obligations derived from the WHO's International Health Regulations, of which Spain is a State Party.
In this regard, he recalled that Articles 13 and 44 of the Regulation establish the duty of technical and logistical cooperation between countries in the face of international health emergencies, while Articles 27 and 28 expressly regulate the management of infection situations on board international means of transport.
He also pointed out that these treaties are part of the Spanish legal system and are fully binding on public administrations.
Development of the health operation
Mónica García explained that the designed operation clearly distinguishes between symptomatic cases and passengers considered close contacts without symptoms.
Active or symptomatic cases will not travel to the Canary Islands. They will be evacuated directly from Cape Verde via medical aircraft to high-isolation hospital units to receive specialized care.
Meanwhile, those continuing their journey to the Canary Islands are close contacts or passengers without symptoms, whose arrival is expected within an estimated period of between 72 and 96 hours.
The disembarkation will be carried out through controlled health circuits, with direct transfer from the port to the airport and subsequent return to their countries of origin, avoiding at all times transit through spaces open to the general population.
Regarding the Spanish citizens on board, the Ministry is currently verifying whether they maintain their habitual residence in Spain. In those cases where this is the case, their evacuation will be carried out through an operation coordinated by the Ministry of Defense, and they will be transferred to the Gómez Ulla Central Defense Hospital in Madrid, where they will undergo the corresponding quarantine under medical supervision.
In case of the appearance of symptoms, the National Health System will activate the state UATAN network to guarantee immediate and safe care.
The minister wanted to convey a message of reassurance to the public, insisting that the risk to the general population remains very low.
Although hantavirus can have a high mortality rate in certain severe clinical forms, especially respiratory ones, the Ministry has explained that the specific context of the outbreak —a ship with close and prolonged cohabitation— much favors the possible interpersonal transmission.
International health authorities have also identified the variant involved as Andean hantavirus, one of the few variants in which human-to-human transmission has been documented. However, both the WHO and the ECDC agree that this type of transmission remains extremely rare and requires very close and prolonged contact, generally with symptomatic individuals.
Source:
Link: https://www.sanidad.gob.es/gabinete/notasPrensa.do?id=6901
____
No comments:
Post a Comment