• Spanish authorities are preparing for the evacuation of over 140 passengers from a hantavirus-stricken cruise ship.
• The MV Hondius is expected to arrive in the Canary Islands on Sunday, with repatriation flights ready thereafter.
• Health officials maintain that the risk to the public remains low despite the outbreak.

Spanish officials are getting ready to receive the MV Hondius, a cruise ship affected by a deadly hantavirus outbreak, as it heads to the Canary Islands this weekend. The ship, carrying more than 140 passengers and crew members, is scheduled to reach Tenerife on Sunday, May 10. Emergency services are preparing to ensure the passengers arrive at a cordoned-off area where careful evacuations will take place, according to NPR and Channel News Asia.

The Spanish government announced that evacuations would begin as soon as the ship docks, with countries set to repatriate their citizens. Cabinet minister Angel Victor Torres stated that planes will be available on the same day to transport passengers back home, as noted by South China Morning Post. However, the ship will not be permitted to dock in Tenerife; instead, passengers will be transferred to the port by smaller vessels.

International concern has risen due to reports of three deaths on board since the ship departed Argentina in April. Health Minister Monica Garcia advised that symptomatic foreign nationals would be sent back to their countries if urgent medical care is not needed, emphasizing ongoing assessments of the situation, according to Channel News Asia and South China Morning Post.

The outbreak has raised alarms, despite the World Health Organization (WHO) assessing that the risk to the wider public remains low. Hantavirus transmission among humans is uncommon, primarily spreading through contaminated rodent droppings. According to NPR and South China Morning Post, currently, no remaining passengers or crew members have shown symptoms.

Efforts are also being made to trace and monitor individuals who disembarked from the MV Hondius before the outbreak was identified. Health authority officials in multiple countries are busy tracking contacts to mitigate further spread, as reported by NPR and Channel News Asia.