Rotterdam prepares for arrival of 'hantavirus cruise ship'

©picture alliance / Anadolu | Andres Gutierrez

The port of Rotterdam is preparing for the arrival of the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius, which will arrive in the city of Maas on Monday morning. The ship departed from Tenerife earlier this week, where passengers and part of the crew had disembarked, and is now setting sail for the Netherlands.

The cruise ship had been flagged with an outbreak of acute respiratory syndrome in the Atlantic, possibly due to hantavirus. Three passengers have since died, including a Dutch couple and a Briton. The virus is being investigated as a rare Andean variant with a relatively high mortality rate.

Currently, 27 people are still on board the Hondius. They include 25 crew members, 1 doctor and 1 nurse.

There are still 4 Dutch people on board. Upon arrival in Rotterdam, they will have to immediately enter quarantine at their home address. The remaining 23 on board are from abroad.

The ship is expected to be moored at Calandsteiger 7 in the Europoort between 10 a.m. and noon. After arriving at the port, those on board will be brought ashore in phases. Port authorities have prepared 23 containers to accommodate the foreign crew. Whether they will actually spend the mandatory six-week quarantine period there is not yet certain. That option, however, is being considered in concrete terms, reports GGD Rotterdam-Rijnmond, the local health authority that will test both the crew and medical personnel upon arrival.

So far, no new possible hantavirus infections have been reported on board. So writes cruise organizer Oceanwide Expeditions in a press release on Sunday.

As soon as all aboard are disembarked, the Hondius will be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected. Only then will the ship be ready for its next voyage.

©picture alliance / Anadolu | Andres Gutierrez - The photo shows Spanish police standing by as the ship arrived in the port of Granadilla in Tenerife.