The marooned luxury cruise ship at the center of a deadly suspected hantavirus outbreak is planning to dock in Spain, the World Health Organization revealed Tuesday.
The cruise ship carrying 150 people is stranded in the Atlantic Ocean off the African coast after the island nation of Cape Verde refused to let passengers ashore amid health concerns.
The MV Hondius, which was on a weekslong polar cruise from Argentina to Antarctica when passengers started falling ill, will start heading to Spain’s Canary Islands, the WHO said.
Health workers get off the Dutch-flagged MV Hondius on Monday, May 4, 2026. AP
WHO epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention chief Maria Van Kerkhove speaks about the vessel and those sick onboard. World Health Organization/AFP via Getty Images“We’re working with Spanish authorities, who will welcome the ship,” Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s director of epidemic and pandemic preparedness, told reporters.
Spanish authorities, meanwhile, haven’t yet confirmed if they will allow the ship to dock but said they were monitoring the situation.
As the ship awaits help, distraught passengers have been confined to their cabins amid the ongoing health scare tied to the rodent-borne illness.
An empty deck on the vessel as passengers quarantine. APA Dutch couple and a German national have died in recent weeks following the suspected hantavirus outbreak, while a British national was evacuated from the ship and is in intensive care in South Africa.
Three more people with suspected cases are still on board.
Medics have been trying to evacuate at least two people with symptoms of the deadly virus in recent days. The third suspected case still on board only reported a mild fever, according to officials.
A lounge inside the vessel remains empty as passengers are sick onboard. APAuthorities in Cape Verde sent teams of doctors, surgeons, nurses and laboratory specialists to provide the vessel with medical support, officials said.
At least five people with full protective gear — white overalls, boots, and face masks — were seen disembarking from the ship into a small vessel on Monday.
It wasn’t immediately clear when the sick people on board would be evacuated.
WHO officials believe the illness may have begun spreading after rare human-to-human transmission occurred between very close contacts aboard the ship.
The MV Hondius off the port of Praia on Tuesday, May 5, 2026. AFP via Getty Images“We do believe that there may be some human-to-human transmission that’s happening among the really close contacts, the husband and wife, people who have shared cabins,” Van Kerkhove said.
“Some people on the ship were couples, they were sharing rooms so that’s quite intimate contact.”
With Post wires
