The hantavirus-hit cruise ship MV Hondius arrived in Rotterdam on Monday morning to undergo a comprehensive disinfection process. Dutch authorities have finalized quarantine arrangements for the remaining 25 crew members and two medical staff still on board the vessel.
According to local officials, dedicated quarantine facilities have been established to accommodate some of the non-Dutch crew members. However, it remains undetermined whether they will fulfill the entire recommended 42-day quarantine period at these locations.
The Dutch-flagged luxury cruise ship, operated by Oceanwide Expeditions, was carrying approximately 150 passengers and crew representing 23 nations when a cluster of severe respiratory illnesses was first reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) on May 2. The outbreak has claimed three lives to date: a Dutch couple and a German national.
Prior to its arrival in the Netherlands, the vessel was stranded off the coast of Cape Verde—its original final destination—after local authorities prohibited passengers from disembarking. Following a coordinated request from the WHO and the European Union, Spain managed an evacuation operation at the Canary Islands. The ship subsequently departed for Rotterdam manned only by a skeleton crew and two accompanying medical professionals.
Hantavirus is primarily transmitted to humans through contact with infected rodents. However, person-to-person transmission can occur in rare instances following prolonged, close contact. The virus carries an incubation period that can last up to six weeks.
In response to the health crisis, international containment protocols have been activated. Crew members, disembarked passengers, and their close contacts have been placed under quarantine across several countries globally.
Health authorities have identified the specific strain involved in the outbreak as the Andes virus, a hantavirus variant that has circulated in Argentina and Chile for decades. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) confirmed that testing of ship samples revealed no meaningful variation in the viral strain.
The official global case count remains fluid. On Friday, the WHO adjusted its tally from 11 down to 10 cases after an inconclusive case from the United States returned a negative test result. As of May 15, the official WHO record stood at 10 cases—comprising eight confirmed and two probable cases, including the three fatalities.
However, the total is expected to rise again following an announcement by the provincial government of British Columbia on Saturday, which confirmed that a Canadian passenger from the MV Hondius has tested positive for hantavirus. The WHO stated on Sunday that it is awaiting official documentation, noting that this addition will bring the global outbreak total to 11 cases.