The last two evacuation planes carrying passengers and crew from the MV Hondius cruise ship, hit by a deadly hantavirus outbreak, have landed in the Netherlands. The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed 28 evacuees on board, including six passengers and 19 crew members.

The passengers—four from Australia, one from New Zealand, and a British resident of Australia—will be held in a quarantine facility near Eindhoven airbase before repatriation. This caps a complex operation evacuating 94 people to some 20 countries for quarantine.

The outbreak began 41 days after the ship departed southern Argentina, with the first positive test nine days ago. Three people—a Dutch couple and a German national—have died from the Andes virus strain, which is typically rodent-borne but can spread person-to-person in limited circumstances.

US health officials reported that one of 18 American passengers tested positive at a biocontainment unit in Nebraska. The infected individual is being monitored at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, along with 15 others; two more are at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta.

US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. claimed the situation is under control, stating, “We have this under control, and we’re not worried about it.” President Donald Trump allegedly called the administration's response “fine.”

The MV Hondius left Argentina on April 1 for a transatlantic voyage to Cape Verde. The World Health Organization believes the first infection occurred before departure, with subsequent transmission among passengers and crew.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus sought to reassure the public, saying, “There is nothing to fear. The risk is low. This is not another COVID.” He recommended a 42-day quarantine for all passengers.

As of Monday, seven confirmed cases and two suspected cases have been reported, including a French passenger whose condition is deteriorating. The ship is now sailing to Rotterdam for disinfection, with 25 crew and two medical staff remaining on board.

Source: www.aljazeera.com