Brit holiday hotspot fears Covid 2.0 ground zero over hantavirus ship | UK | News
Dockers and residents in Tenerife are alarmed by the impending arrival of the MV Hondius, warning that a hantavirus outbreak on the ship could trigger a public health crisis reminiscent of Covid.
The ship was linked to three deaths from the disease, popularly known as the “mouse virus”, after it became stranded off the coast of Cape Verde before Spain allowed it to sail to the Canary Islands. Of the 146 people still on board, 23 are British citizens; 22 are traveling as passengers and one as crew.
Three people, including 56-year-old former police officer Martin Anstee, a British citizen, were flown off the ship for treatment.
Why are the people of Tenerife worried about the docking of MV Hondius?
Dockers’ union representative Joana Batista said her colleagues were left in the dark about the ship’s arrival and were deeply concerned about its consequences.
He said: “All they need is information. What are the requirements if they have to use PPE, what safety measures are in place, with that information the whole operation can go smoothly but we don’t have that information. Everyone is worried because they have family at home and the last thing they want is for the virus to spread further.”
Covid 2.0 fears
Batista said workers were “willing to help” but warned that fear of “Covid 2.0” was spreading among his members without clarity on safety protocols.
Local residents also called on the government to deny ship entry. One of them told the BBC: “I think the logical thing for them to do is to worry about us and not let that ship enter the Canary Islands. It should stay where it is… or take it to the Spanish mainland or to Africa.”
Canary Islands President Fernando Clavijo made it clear that he was against the decision to dock, arguing that the decision to dock at the port posed an unacceptable risk to the local population.
Fears are based on a deep collective memory; The islands were among Europe’s earliest Covid quarantine zones, an episode that saw more than 700 tourists confined to Tenerife hotels for two weeks in February 2020.
What does WHO say about the hantavirus outbreak on the MV Hondius?
Travelers were required to wear masks, but WHO officials sought to reassure the public that the outbreak did not require mass quarantine measures.
Infectious diseases epidemiologist Maria van Kerkhove told a press conference on Thursday: “This is not Covid, this is not flu, it spreads very, very differently.”
WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus confirmed that the public health risk remains “low.” He added that the two laboratory-confirmed cases could be traced back to birdwatching trips in Argentina, Chile and Uruguay, which are known to harbor “rat strains known to carry the virus.”
