Hantavirus-hit cruise ship arrives at Rotterdam port as final destination
Authorities prepared quarantine and disinfection for 27 people still aboard, after the outbreak reached 11 cases and three passengers died.
- On Monday, May 18, 2026, the cruise ship MV Hondius docked in Rotterdam, Netherlands, with 25 crew members and two medical staff on board after a deadly hantavirus outbreak that claimed three lives.
- The hantavirus outbreak aboard the Hondius is the first known case on a cruise ship, with officials identifying the Andes virus strain endemic in Argentina as the cause, capable of human-to-human transmission.
- Port authorities prepared quarantine arrangements for the 27 remaining individuals in temporary containers with satellite internet and catering. The vessel will undergo three-day decontamination based on Dutch public health guidelines, according to harbor master René de Vries.
- The World Health Organization maintained its assessment of the outbreak as "low risk," with WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stating "there is no sign we are seeing the start of a larger outbreak."
- Oceanwide Expeditions expects the vessel to resume operations as early as next month following inspection by public health officials, though some Rotterdam residents expressed concern about quarantine compliance, recalling past pandemic experiences.
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The epidemic outbreak of hantavirus detected on the cruise ship MV Hondius, which departed from Ushuaia (Argentina) to Cape Verde, has already left three dead and keeps international health alerts activated under the supervision of the World Health Organization (WHO).The health crisis has forced the deployment of protocols of isolation, epidemiological monitoring and quarantine in several countries.On the ship there were 13 passengers and one Sp…
The cruise ship, the scene of an epidemic of Andes Hantavirus, arrived at the port of Rotterdam on Monday 18 May. For crew members, this is the beginning of a quarantine under strict sanitary protocol.
Currently, the 25-person crew, as well as a Dutch doctor and nurse, are on board the Hondius, and none of them have shown any symptoms of hantavirus infection so far.
After the Hantavirus outbreak on the »Hondius« three people died, several were infected. Now the ship is back home. The body of a German woman is to be cremated.
The cruise ship, chartered by a Dutch company, completes in the Netherlands a journey of a month and a half. On board there are 27 last crew members, who will start about forty, but also the remains of one of the three victims of the virus.
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