90-Second Read: Passengers begin leaving Hantavirus ship at Tenerife

Passengers on the cruise ship at the center of the Hantavirus outbreak started to leave the vessel Sunday morning at the Spanish island of Tenerife, authorities said. All of the more than 100 passengers are being tested for the Hantavirus, which is a rare disease typically caused by exposure to infected rats. The WHO reported on Friday that there are a total of six confirmed cases of the "Andes" Hantavirus variant linked to the cruise ship and two probable cases. The disembarkation was "proceeding normally" and all passengers on the MV Hondius were still asymptomatic, Spain's health minister said. The passengers were being screened by public health authorities before being put on planes to be repatriated to their home countries.

The disembarkment of the first group of MV Hondius passengers has started," World Health Organization Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on X on Sunday. The passengers are being brought ashore by nationality via small boats, according to tour operator Oceanwide Expeditions. He first reported symptoms two weeks after leaving the vessel and is said be in a stable condition while isolating, according to media reports. It is expected to take five days for the ship to reach the Netherlands. The MV Hondius anchored early Sunday at the Port of Granadilla in the Canary Islands, where Spanish authorities set up large reception tents and restricted access to the waterfront.

Their luggage will remain aboard the ship, which will continue on to the Port of Rotterdam with the remaining crew. The Andes is the only variant known to spread among humans, and the incubation period lasts up to nine weeks. The arrival of paratroopers, medical personnel and medical supplies from the sky has hopefully reassured the people of Tristan da Cunha," Brig Ed Cartwright, officer commanding 16 Air Assault Brigade, said in a statement. Most people say they want to continue buying gasoline and diesel cars, although sales numbers show the popularity of combustion engine cars is crashing. Spanish nationals will be flown to Madrid and put into mandatory quarantine at the Gomez Ulla military hospital.

France, Germany, Belgium, Ireland and the Netherlands sent planes to repatriate their citizens, while the European Union sent two additional planes for the remaining EU nationals, Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska told a press conference on Saturday in Madrid. The United States and Britain are coordinating planes for non-EU citizens from countries that were unable to send transport. The man left the MV Hondius in mid-April at Tristan da Cunha, Britain's most remote inhabited overseas territory, where he lives. The European Commission wants a common strategy to face the economic superpower, but that's being undermined by divisions among EU capitals. The bloc's push to become war-ready offers a way for carmakers and parts suppliers to stay afloat.