MV Hondius hantavirus outbreak

MV Hondius at Spitsbergen in June 2025

Since 1 April 2026, an outbreak of hantavirus has been found on the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius. As of 7 May 2026, the ship has set sail for Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain, after the Spanish Ministry of Health approved the ship's arrival. Before, it had been docked at Praia, Cape Verde. The president of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo, had been against the idea of the ship's arrival out of concerns for the islanders' safety. Thirty passengers left from the ship during its stop in St Helena, all of whom have been contact traced by the UK Health Security Agency.

On 6 May, it was confirmed that the Andes virus was responsible for the outbreak. The virus is normally found in South America. While hantaviruses are normally carried and transmitted by rodents, the Andes virus has been seen to go through human-to-human transmission in very rare cases. Indeed, hantavirus found on board Hondius has been caused by human–human transmission.

On 1 April 2026, the ship left Ushuaia, Argentina. On 11 April, a passenger died on board from the virus. His body was removed from the ship on 24 April in Saint Helena, where his wife also left. Two days later, she died in a Johannesburg hospital. A British passenger was sent to Johannesburg in order to be treated, in a critical but stable condition, with hantavirus. A third passenger died on board.