Spain prepares isolated evacuations as Andes virus outbreak spreads from cruise ship to multiple countries

Spanish authorities are preparing coordinated evacuation procedures for the MV Hondius cruise ship arriving in Tenerife on Sunday, following an Andes virus outbreak that has killed three people and infected at least five passengers who disembarked before diagnosis. Over 140 crew and passengers will be evacuated to isolated, cordoned-off areas and transported in guarded vehicles through segregated airport zones. Health authorities across four continents are tracking 24+ passengers who left the ship on April 24 without contact tracing. A Dutch flight attendant who briefly contacted an infected passenger tested negative, easing concerns about person-to-person transmission. The U.S. and UK are sending planes to repatriate their nationals; American patients will quarantine at Nebraska Medicine's specialized biocontainment unit. The WHO maintains that public risk remains low, as hantavirus primarily spreads via rodent inhalation, though the Andes strain may rarely transmit between people. Contact tracing efforts span St. Helena, South Africa, Johannesburg, and multiple European locations.