Final Evacuation Flights Planned After Hantavirus-Hit Ship Reaches Tenerife
Spanish authorities said the last evacuation flight from the quarantined cruise ship would depart on Monday, as passengers underwent final health checks following a deadly hantavirus outbreak.
Boats approach the Dutch flagged hantavirus-stricken cruise ship MV Hondius after it arrived at the industrial port of Granadilla de Abona on the island of Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands on May 10, 2026.
JORGE GUERRERO / AFP
Spanish authorities said the last evacuation flight from the quarantined cruise ship would depart on Monday, as passengers underwent final health checks following a deadly hantavirus outbreak.
The Dutch-flagged cruise ship MV Hondius arrived off Tenerife on Sunday ahead of a large-scale evacuation operation after a hantavirus outbreak on board killed three passengers and triggered international concern.
Spanish Health Minister Mónica García Gómez said all remaining passengers were asymptomatic and undergoing final medical assessments before disembarkation began at the industrial port of Granadilla on the Canary Island of Tenerife. She added that the final evacuation flight‒bound for Australia‒was scheduled to leave on Monday.
According to Spanish authorities, Spanish nationals would be evacuated first, followed by a Dutch-organised flight carrying passengers from the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Greece and some crew members. Separate repatriation flights were also arranged for citizens of Canada, Turkey, France, Britain, Ireland and the United States.
The evacuation operation comes after days of political tension in the Canary Islands, where regional authorities had resisted allowing the ship to dock following the outbreak.
The vessel was ultimately authorised to anchor offshore rather than fully enter the port.
Officials also warned that worsening weather conditions could force the ship to leave Tenerife from Monday onward, increasing pressure on authorities to complete the evacuation quickly.
The outbreak has raised global concern because the Andes strain of hantavirus detected on board is the only known variant capable of human-to-human transmission.
