(Geneva, 10th) The World Health Organization (WHO) stated on the 9th that every person aboard the Netherlands-registered cruise ship "Hondius," which is experiencing a deadly hantavirus outbreak, is being classified as a "high-risk contact" and must undergo 42 days of active monitoring.
Currently, there are about 150 people on the Hondius involved in the outbreak, and the ship is heading towards the waters off Tenerife in Spain's Canary Islands.
The "Hondius" is expected to arrive at Tenerife on the 10th local time. The ship carries more than 140 passengers and crew; 8 people have fallen ill, of whom 3 have died. Of the 8 cases, 6 have been confirmed to be infected with Andes virus, a member of the hantavirus family.
Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO’s Director of Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness and Prevention, said: "We are classifying all persons aboard as so-called high-risk contacts."
She pointed out that "currently no one on the ship is showing any symptoms," but she also added, "it is recommended that all disembarked passengers and crew are actively followed up and observed for 42 days."
Nevertheless, she emphasized that, for the general public as well as the residents of Tenerife, where the Hondius is scheduled to dock tomorrow, the risk remains "very low."
On the 9th, WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus traveled to Tenerife, Spain, to coordinate the transfer of Hondius personnel and related health measures on site. He urged local residents to remain calm and stressed "this is not another COVID-19 pandemic."
Tedros praised Spain’s agreement to receive the cruise ship as "an act of solidarity and moral responsibility," and expressed appreciation to the residents of Tenerife on behalf of WHO and others.
According to Sky News UK, the ship is carrying 19 British passengers and 3 British crew members. Upon their arrival in the UK on the 10th, they will be transferred to an accommodation block at a hospital in Merseyside, northwest England, for quarantine.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has activated its emergency operations center and elevated the response to a “Level 3” emergency; CDC officials confirmed that American passengers from the cruise ship will be quarantined in Nebraska upon their return to the US.