The ship arrived off the coast of the Canary Islands after weeks at sea, at the center of an international public health response triggered by a hantavirus outbreak that left three people dead.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who leads a team in Tenerife, stressed that the risk to the general public remains low.
“It’s not another COVID,” he told reporters at a press conference on Sunday, adding that “the risk to the public is low» and that people “should not be afraid or panic”.
There have been eight cases linked to the ship, six of which were laboratory confirmed as hantavirus infections on Friday, all identified as Andes virus (ANDV), although no new deaths have been recorded since May 2.
Click here for the WHO fact sheet on hantavirus
Landing operation
The disembarkation operation began early in the morning, with Spanish health authorities boarding the ship to assess passengers and crew before transferring them to shore in stages depending on nationality and flight availability.
According to Diana Rojas Alvarez, head of WHO health operations in Tenerife, passengers and crew from Spain, France, Canada and the Netherlands were among the first groups to leave the ship.
“It was extremely intense, but also very well organized,» she said during a WHO press briefing.
Around 46 passengers and crew were expected to disembark on Sunday, with operations expected to continue until Monday. Around 30 crew members are expected to remain on board when the ship returns to the Netherlands, accompanied by a medical team.
Repatriation flights
WHO officials said none of the passengers would travel on commercial flights. Instead, chartered repatriation flights are coordinated with national authorities under strict health protocols.
Maria van Kerkhove, WHO director for epidemic and pandemic management, said passengers and crew would be subject to active medical surveillance for up to six weeks due to the incubation period of the virus.
“Our recommendation is active monitoring, that is, daily monitoring, checking for fever or other symptoms,” she said, adding that WHO recommends quarantine and monitoring at home or in facilities for 42 days.
“This is truly a cautious approach to ensure that we have no possibility of this virus being passed on to others. We also recommend that they wear a respirator when getting off the boat and when around others, for that extra layer of protection.
Hantavirus disease
Hantavirus is a rare disease usually linked to exposure to infected rodents and can cause serious respiratory illnesses. The Andean strain associated with the outbreak is the only known strain of hantavirus with documented human-to-human transmission, although the WHO has said the risk of transmission remains low.
The agency said the operation in Tenerife involved close coordination between Spain, the Netherlands, the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and WHO teams on the ground.
“This is what the WHO does,said Dr. van Kerkhove, emphasizing that the agency regularly coordinates international responses to infectious disease threats, even when public attention is limited.
