Cape Verde: three evacuated from MV Hondius over suspected hantavirus

Three people were medically evacuated from the cruise ship MV Hondius off Cape Verde on May 6 after suspected hantavirus infections aboard the vessel.

The Dutch foreign ministry said the evacuees were a British national, a Dutch national and a German national. Oceanwide Expeditions, the ship’s operator, said the three had disembarked and were being flown to specialized care while the vessel remained anchored offshore.

The World Health Organization said the outbreak linked to the ship totals seven cases: two laboratory-confirmed infections, five suspected cases and three deaths. WHO has said the wider-public risk remains low, while noting that limited human-to-human spread has been reported for Andes virus.

The evacuation is the latest step in an international response that has involved Cape Verde, the Netherlands, the ship operator and health authorities in other countries. It also marks a shift from earlier planning discussions to an actual transfer off the vessel.

There are still unanswered questions about which deaths are definitively linked to hantavirus and whether more passengers or crew will test positive after follow-up screening. For now, the immediate priority is treatment for the evacuees and continued monitoring of everyone who remained on board.