Passengers from virus-hit cruise ship fly home as CDC says outbreak threat is low

Passengers from the cruise ship MV Hondius, which experienced a hantavirus outbreak, are being evacuated from Tenerife in the Canary Islands. The first plane carrying passengers has already departed for Madrid, with others to follow. Authorities state that none of the over 140 individuals on board have shown symptoms of the virus. Passengers are leaving their luggage behind and only taking essential items, with some crew and the body of a deceased passenger remaining on the ship for disinfection in Rotterdam. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has assured the public that the threat of a widespread outbreak is "extremely low," emphasizing that person-to-person transmission of this hantavirus strain is rare. World Health Organization Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also urged residents of Tenerife not to panic, stating, "This is not another COVID-19." Hantavirus is typically spread through contact with rodents, but the Andes strain can, in rare cases, transmit between people. A Dutch couple and a German woman have died from the virus, with the Dutch couple believed to have contracted it before boarding in Argentina. Over two dozen American passengers were on the ship; seven have returned home and shown no symptoms, while the remaining 17 will be monitored at the University of Nebraska Medical Center's National Quarantine Unit.