Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus will accompany Spain’s Health and Interior Ministers to a command center located on Tenerife.
The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, is set to fly to the Canary Islands to oversee the coordination of the evacuation of passengers from the cruise ship MV Hondius, which has experienced an outbreak of Hantavirus Andes. This was reported by AFP, citing unnamed sources within Spain’s Ministry of the Interior.
According to these sources, Mr. Ghebreyesus will join Spain’s Ministers of Health and the Interior at the operational center established on Tenerife. There, he will provide assistance to ensure “coordination between agencies, sanitary control, and the implementation of established surveillance and response protocols.”
Previously, the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that approximately 40 individuals, including UK and Dutch nationals, as well as passengers from the USA, Germany, Canada, Chile, Turkey, and five other nations, had disembarked the MV Hondius—the site of the Hantavirus outbreak—on St. Helena following the death of a tourist from the Netherlands. In total, eight infections with the Hantavirus were confirmed aboard the vessel. Three passengers, including a couple from the Netherlands, have passed away, and one afflicted person is in critical condition in a Johannesburg hospital. To curb further spread of the infection, passengers were instructed to remain confined to their cabins; however, the incubation period for Hantavirus can span several weeks, complicating the timely identification of new cases.
Three weeks prior, the vessel departed from Ushuaia, Argentina, heading for its final destination: the Canary Islands, Spain. Approximately 150 people are currently on board, predominantly citizens of the USA, the UK, Spain, and the Netherlands. One Russian national is part of the crew. The ship has already made calls at several islands in the Atlantic Ocean. It is anticipated to arrive at the Canary Islands on May 10 for epidemiological checks and disinfection procedures.
Hantaviruses constitute a family of viruses that primarily affect small mammals but can also be transmitted to humans. In severe instances, the lungs of the infected become affected, leading to heart failure and hemorrhagic fever.
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