By Our Reporter
A special flight carrying 20 British nationals evacuated from a cruise ship linked to a hantavirus outbreak landed in Manchester, northwest England, on Sunday amid heightened public health precautions.
Television footage showed the aircraft arriving from Tenerife, where the expedition cruise vessel, MV Hondius, remains docked following the outbreak that has already claimed three lives and left several others ill.
The evacuated passengers are expected to undergo medical screening at Arrowe Park Hospital in Wirral, near Liverpool, where they will remain in quarantine for at least 72 hours while health officials monitor their condition.
According to information released by Spanish authorities and cited by Britain’s Press Association (PA), 22 British nationals were initially evacuated from the ship, although only 20 travelled on the special repatriation flight. The remaining two passengers were expected to continue to another destination.
British officials have yet to formally confirm the exact number of evacuees.
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper praised emergency teams and health officials involved in the operation, saying efforts were carried out “around the clock” to ensure passengers returned safely with strict public health measures in place.
The National Health Service (NHS) had earlier confirmed that the passengers would be transported directly to the hospital upon arrival for testing and observation.
Health authorities are closely monitoring the situation after the outbreak onboard resulted in the deaths of a Dutch couple and a German woman. The disease, hantavirus, is a rare but potentially deadly infection commonly transmitted through contact with infected rodents or their droppings.
The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed on Friday that six cases had been verified from eight suspected infections linked to the cruise ship.
Medical experts say symptoms of hantavirus can initially resemble flu-like illness, including fever, fatigue, muscle aches and breathing difficulties, but severe cases can rapidly progress and become life-threatening.
The outbreak has raised fresh concerns over disease containment aboard cruise vessels, particularly in confined environments where passengers and crew remain in close contact for extended periods.
Authorities in both Spain and the United Kingdom continue to assess the situation as investigations into the source and spread of the infection remain ongoing.
In Nigeria, however, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has assured Nigerians that there is currently no confirmed case of Hantavirus in the country despite reports of an ongoing outbreak linked to cruise ship travel across multiple countries.
In a public health advisory issued recently, the Director-General of the NCDC, Jide Idris, said the agency was closely monitoring reports of a Hantavirus cluster associated with international cruise ship travel.
According to him, the outbreak involves a limited number of confirmed and suspected cases, while investigations and contact tracing efforts are ongoing in the affected countries. He added that available information indicates that the risk to the general public remains low.
Idris explained that Hantaviruses are a group of viruses primarily carried by rodents and can be transmitted to humans through contact with infected rodents or exposure to their urine, saliva, droppings, or contaminated dust particles.
He listed symptoms of the disease to include fever, fatigue, body aches, headaches, and gastrointestinal complications, noting that severe cases could lead to respiratory distress and breathing difficulties.
The NCDC boss further disclosed that the current cluster has been linked to the Andes virus strain, which has previously shown limited human-to-human transmission, especially through close contact.
“At this time, there is no evidence of Hantavirus cases in Nigeria. NCDC is closely monitoring the situation and maintaining surveillance for emerging infectious diseases,” Idris stated.
He urged Nigerians not to panic but to remain vigilant by observing preventive measures aimed at reducing contact with rodents and maintaining proper hygiene.
