It is the second positive case among the 14 Spanish nationals who were evacuated to the Spanish island of Tenerife from luxury liner MV Hondius after an outbreak of hantavirus
A general view of the cruise ship MV Hondius stationary off the port of Praia, the capital of Cape Verde, on May 3, 2026(Image: Photo by AFP via Getty Images)
A Spanish national in quarantine, who is among those evacuated from a cruise ship earlier this month, has tested positive for hantavirus.
The Spanish Health Ministry confirmed the news.
It is the second positive case among the 14 Spanish nationals who were evacuated to the Spanish island of Tenerife from luxury liner MV Hondius after an outbreak of hantavirus.
The vessel had been carrying around 150 passengers and crew from 23 countries when a cluster of severe respiratory illnesses was first reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) on 2 May, RTE reports.
The WHO said on Saturday that 12 suspected and confirmed cases have been reported to the agency, including three deaths, and that no deaths have been reported since 2 May.
Spread by rodents, hantavirus is a rare virus for which no vaccines or specific treatments exist.
The infected Spanish national has been taken to an isolation unit at Gómez Ulla Hospital, the Health Ministry said on X.
It went on to say that the fact that the case was detected among those already in quarantine “does not modify the risk situation” for the overall population.
Earlier this month, the ship was finally permitted to dock and disembark passengers in the Canary Islands.
The disease, known for its high fatality rate, has tragically claimed the lives of three passengers on board the cruise liner while many more are currently ill with the nasty virus.
On May 10th, the Spanish island permitted a medical evacuation of those left on board the ship with several escorted from the vessel onto flights to their home nations where they will then self-isolate in quarantine. The vessel docked in the port of Granadilla in Tenerife yesterday for the carefully managed operation with more evacuations set to take place today (Monday).
However, residents across the island were concerned by the scenes of those who had already disembarked, with fears of another COVID-type pandemic hitting the Spanish islands.
Several passengers were allegedly spotted without properly fitting facemasks within hours of arriving. One passenger, reportedly from the Netherlands, was photographed waving to reporters from the back of a bus after pulling off his mask.
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