The evacuation of passengers from the Hondius ship, amid a hantavirus outbreak, proceeded normally on Sunday at Granadilla de Abona port. Ninety-four people of various nationalities left the vessel under WHO and Spanish authorities coordination. Final transfers remain scheduled for Monday.
The MV Hondius anchored at the Tenerife port around 6:00 a.m. Disembarkation began at 9:45 with the 14 Spaniards, who were taken by UME buses to Tenerife South airport and flown on a military plane to Torrejón base. There they entered Hospital Gómez Ulla to start quarantine and undergo PCR tests.
In total, 94 passengers from 19 nationalities left the ship on Sunday. Groups included those from France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Turkey and the United States. One French person developed symptoms compatible with hantavirus during the repatriation flight, according to Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu.
Two women in Alicante and Barcelona, contacts of a deceased passenger, tested negative in PCR tests and will remain in hospital isolation. Canary president Fernando Clavijo rejected the anchoring citing health risks, but the central government proceeded with the operation coordinated by Minister Mónica García. Pope León XIV and President Pedro Sánchez thanked the solidarity of the Canarians.
