Cruise Ship Passenger from U.S. Tests Positive for Hantavirus Following Evacuation

By The Associated Press

Published: 2026-05-11

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — A French woman and an American passenger tested positive for hantavirus as countries worldwide arranged repatriation flights for passengers from a cruise ship affected by an outbreak that has resulted in deaths, with some passengers placed in quarantine or isolation.

Passengers began departing the MV Hondius on military and government-chartered flights starting Sunday after the vessel anchored in the Canary Islands. Personnel wearing full-body protective suits and breathing masks assisted passengers from the ship to shore in Tenerife, with the process continuing into Monday.

It marks the first reported hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship, according to Maria Van Kerkhove, director of epidemic and pandemic preparedness at the World Health Organization (WHO). Three passengers have died in connection with the outbreak, though health authorities have stated that the risk to the general public remains low.

The ship's captain, Jan Dobrogowski, released a video message on Monday in which he acknowledged the passengers' and crew's response to the situation and requested respect for their privacy.

He stated: "I've witnessed your caring, your unity and quiet strength amongst everybody on board — guests and crew alike — and I must commend my crew for the courage and the selfless resolve that they showed time and again in the most difficult moments. I could not imagine sailing through these circumstances with a better group of people, guests and crew alike."

New Cases Reported in France and United States

French Health Minister Stephanie Rist reported on Monday that a French woman who tested positive for hantavirus experienced a deterioration in her condition overnight in a hospital. The woman was one of five French passengers repatriated on Sunday. She developed symptoms during the flight to Paris, according to Rist in an interview with public broadcaster France-Inter.

U.S. health officials announced late Sunday that one of 17 American passengers evacuated from the ship and flown to Nebraska had tested positive for hantavirus but showed no symptoms, while another exhibited mild symptoms. The flight arrived in the early hours of Monday, after which passengers were transported by bus from the airport.

The American passengers were scheduled for initial evaluation at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, which operates a federally funded quarantine facility, to determine close contacts with symptomatic individuals and assess transmission risks.

Kayla Thomas, a spokesperson for the Nebraska Medicine network involved in the passengers' care, said: "One passenger will be transported to the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit upon arrival, while other passengers will go to the National Quarantine Unit for assessment and monitoring. The passenger who is going to the Biocontainment Unit tested positive for the virus but does not have symptoms."

The University of Nebraska Medical Center maintains a specialized unit for highly infectious diseases, previously used for COVID-19 patients early in the pandemic and for Ebola cases.

The WHO has advised close monitoring of all former passengers, and multiple countries have implemented quarantine measures.

Planes arriving in Tenerife were set to repatriate passengers from more than 20 countries, with the evacuation effort expected to conclude on Monday. A Dutch plane scheduled to arrive in Tenerife on Monday afternoon was to transport passengers originally planned for an Australian-chartered flight, according to Spain's Health Minister Mónica García. As of Monday, 54 passengers and crew remained aboard the ship, with 22 expected to disembark and the remaining 32 to stay on board as the vessel returns to the Netherlands.

WHO spokesperson Sarah Tyler stated on Monday that three people had died since the outbreak began and six had been infected, noting that one U.S. passenger had inconclusive laboratory results.

The MV Hondius departed from Ushuaia, Argentina, on April 1, and a Dutch passenger died aboard on April 11. The WHO announced in early May that it was responding to a suspected hantavirus outbreak on the ship, by which point the vessel was near Cape Verde off West Africa.

Health Officials Assess Public Risk

Hantavirus typically spreads through contact with rodent droppings and is not readily transmitted between humans. However, the Andes virus strain identified in this outbreak has been associated with rare human-to-human transmission. Symptoms, such as fever, chills, and muscle aches, generally appear one to eight weeks after exposure.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated on Sunday that the outbreak does not pose a significant threat comparable to COVID-19 and that the risk to the public is low, advising against panic.

Van Kerkhove, the WHO's top epidemiologist, recommended that passengers' home countries conduct active monitoring, including daily health checks either at home or in specialized facilities.

Several countries have confirmed plans to quarantine or hospitalize their nationals for observation.

Captain Dobrogowski added in his message that his thoughts were with those who had died, stating: "whatever I say will not ease this loss, but I'd like you to know that they are with us every day in our hearts and our thoughts."

*Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.*

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