The 22 British passengers on board are expected to be flown back to the UK the same day. It is understood they will be tested on the ship before they disembark and will then be taken directly from the ship to the plane. <\/p>\n
On arrival, they will be taken to a hospital in Wirral, Merseyside, for \u201cclinical assessment and testing\u201d, health officials said. They will be held for 72 hours, after which specialists will decide whether they can isolate at home or another suitable location.<\/p>\n
Spain’s interior minister has confirmed that Germany, France, Belgium, Ireland, and the Netherlands are among the countries also sending planes.<\/p>\n
The head of the World \u2060Health Organisation arrived in Spain today to join senior \u2060government \u200bofficials overseeing the \u2060evacuation of passengers.<\/p>\n
The ship\u2019s expected arrival has been met with protest on the island, as residents fear possible exposure to the virus.<\/p>\n
But health officials have emphasised that the public is safe. \u201cSo far, the risk for the population of Canary Islands and globally remains low,\u201d WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.<\/p>\n
<\/a>No mandatory quarantine for Americans, says CDC<\/p>\n A CDC official has said that the US government does not plan to quarantine the repatriated American cruise ship passengers upon arrival in Nebraska.<\/p>\n “We are not quarantining anybody,” a CDC official told reporters. <\/p>\n At least 17 Americans are on board the hantavirus-struck cruise ship but none have tested positive for the virus.<\/p>\n The CDC confirmed the deployment of a team to Spain\u2019s Canary Islands, where the ship was expected to arrive this morning, to meet the Americans onboard.<\/p>\n They said a second team will go to Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska as part of a plan to evacuate American passengers from the ship to a University of Nebraska quarantine centre for evaluation and monitoring.<\/p>\n When asked if passengers will be tested, a CDC official said, “it is not recommended to test people that do not have symptoms”, ABC7 reported. <\/p>\n Alisha Rahaman Sarkar10 May 2026 05:10<\/p>\n <\/a> MV Hondius is expected to dock around 6am local time Alisha Rahaman Sarkar10 May 2026 05:00<\/p>\n <\/a>EU health agency says all passengers on hantavirus-hit ship considered high-risk<\/p>\n All passengers on the cruise ship hit by a deadly hantavirus outbreak are considered high-risk contacts as a precautionary measure, Europe’s public health agency said ahead of the ship’s expected anchoring on Sunday off the Spanish island of Tenerife.<\/p>\n Passengers without symptoms will be repatriated for self-quarantine via specially arranged transport, not regular commercial flights, \u2060by their respective \u200bcountries, the \u2060European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said on Saturday as part of its \u2060rapid scientific advice.<\/p>\n The agency urged symptomatic passengers to be prioritised for medical assessment and testing on arrival, adding they may isolate in Tenerife or be medically evacuated home, depending on their condition. <\/p>\n Alisha Rahaman Sarkar10 May 2026 04:50<\/p>\n <\/a>Tenerife residents worried as virus-struck ship nears port<\/p>\n Residents of Tenerife have shared concerns about the MV Hondius docking at the port even as health bodies across the world have sought to reassure residents of the Spanish island that the virus was “not another Covid”.<\/p>\n \u201cI tell you, I don\u2019t like this very much,\u201d said 69-year-old resident Simon Vidal. \u201cAnyone can say what they want. Why did they have to bring a boat from another country here? Why not anywhere else, why bring it to the Canary Islands?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe truth is that it is very worrying,\u201d said 27-year-old Venezuelan immigrant Samantha Aguero. She added: \u201cWe feel a bit unsafe, we don\u2019t feel as there are 100 per cent security measures in place to welcome it. This is a virus after all and we have lived this during the pandemic. But we also need to have empathy.\u201d <\/p>\n Alisha Rahaman Sarkar10 May 2026 04:20<\/p>\n <\/a>Spanish authorities prepare for the arrival of ship<\/p>\n Spanish authorities are preparing the port area in Tenerife to receive passengers from the cruise ship hit with a hantavirus outbreak. <\/p>\n The passengers will then be repatriated to the US, UK, France, Germany, Belgium, Ireland and the Netherlands.<\/p>\n “To assist those European Union countries that do not have air transport resources available, the European Civil Protection Mechanism has made two aircraft available, and the necessary flights for the transfer will be scheduled throughout the course of today, Saturday,” Spanish home minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said yesterday.<\/p>\n He said the disembarkation will be carried out in groups based on nationality.<\/p>\n “Only when the aircraft bound for a specific country is on the runway, ready to fly to that country, will nationals of that country be disembarked and taken there, using transport provided by the Spanish army,” the minister added. <\/p>\n Alisha Rahaman Sarkar10 May 2026 04:07<\/p>\n <\/a>Recap: What will happen to British passengers when they arrive in UK?<\/p>\n British passengers and crew arriving from the hantavirus-struck cruise ship will be taken to a hospital in Wirral, Merseyside, for \u201cclinical assessment and testing, health chiefs have confirmed.<\/p>\n They will be held for 72 hours, after which specialists will decide whether they can isolate at home for 45 days or another suitable location.<\/p>\n A joint statement from NHS England North West, NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICB, Merseyside Police, North West Ambulance Service, and Wirral Council added: \u201cIn line with advice from the UK Health Security Agency, on arrival they will be taken to a managed setting for clinical assessment and testing. We expect this initial stay to be up to 72 hours.<\/p>\n \u201cFollowing this, public health specialists will assess whether they can isolate at home or at another suitable location, based on their living arrangements. The risk to the general population remains very low.<\/p>\n \u201cOur partner organisations are working together to ensure that all returning passengers are welcomed, comfortable and well supported throughout their stay.\u201d<\/p>\n There are currently 22 British citizens – 19 passengers and three crew members – still aboard the vessel, which is expected to dock at Tenerife in the Canary Islands early tomorrow morning.<\/p>\n None of the passengers on the ship are showing symptoms of the virus, the chief of the World Health Organisation said earlier.<\/p>\n Amy-Clare Martin10 May 2026 03:00<\/p>\n <\/a>Hantavirus is giving me Covid flashbacks \u2013 so how worried should I be?<\/p>\n It\u2019s as if, since Covid<\/a>, we\u2019ve all been on a collective red alert for the next big disease. We saw similar fears bubble up earlier this year during the meningitis outbreak in Kent<\/a>, when pharmacies reported that they were running out of stock of the meningitis vaccine due to high demand.<\/p>\n Katie Rosseinsky<\/a> reflects on whether we should all start stocking up on toilet roll:<\/p>\n Amy-Clare Martin10 May 2026 02:00<\/p>\n <\/a>In pictures: Protesters demonstrate ahead of the arrival of the hantavirus cruise ship Amy-Clare Martin10 May 2026 01:00<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/hanta-ship.JPG\")
The MV Hondius will dock in Tenerife soon (VesselFinder.Com)<\/p>\n![\"Dock](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/2274523857.jpg\")
Dock workers protest against the arrival of a cruise ship affected by hantavirus in Santa Cruz de Tenerife on Friday (AFP\/Getty)<\/p>\nDock workers protest against the arrival of a cruise ship affected by hantavirus in Santa Cruz de Tenerife on Friday (AFP\/Getty)![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/2026-05-08T185239Z_177122032_RC255LAC27G5_RTRMADP_3_CRUISESHIP-HANTAVIRUS-TENERIFE.jpg\")
A demonstrator holds a placard reading: \u2018This not help. This is a botched job.\u2019 (Reuters)![\"Dockers](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/2274523749.jpg\")
Dockers hold banners reading ‘without protocol, no safety’ as they protest against the arrival of a cruise ship affected by hantavirus (AFP\/Getty)<\/p>\n