WHO chief shares likelihood of hantavirus spreading as all cruise passengers removed from ship

The director general of the World Health Organization (WHO) has shared the likelihood of there being more hantavirus cases following an outbreak on a cruise ship earlier this month.

MV Hondius docked off the Spanish island of Tenerife on Sunday (May 10) after it was hit by an outbreak of hantavirus.

Almost 120 passengers and 23 crew members were evacuated from the boat, more than a month after it departed from Ushuaia, Argentina.

A German national and a Dutch couple have sadly died from the virus, while eight infections have been confirmed so far.

Health authorities have traced the passengers who disembarked the cruise ship, while those who were evacuated from Tenerife have just began a 45-day isolation.

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of the WHO, said in a press conference on Tuesday (May 12) that he expects there to be more cases of hantavirus.

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus was speaking at a press conference on Tuesday (Carlos Lujan/Europa Press via Getty Images)

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday (May 12), Dr Ghebreyesus said: "On more cases, as I said in my speech, we would expect more cases because, as you may remember, the first case was on 6 April and until the report was confirmed as infectious around 24/25 April, there was a lot of interaction of the passengers.

"As you know, the incubation period is six to eight weeks. Because of the interaction, while they were still on the ship, even as they were taking some preventative measures... we would expect more cases."

The WHO chief went on to assure the public though that this isn't another Covid situation despite the expectation there could be more cases in the coming weeks.

Dr Ghebreyesus added: "At the moment, there ​is no ⁠sign that ⁠we are seeing the start of ‌a larger outbreak, but of course ‌the situation could change and, given the long incubation period of the ⁠virus, it's possible ​we might see ​more cases in ​the coming weeks."

The ship docked in Tenerife over the weekend to allow passengers to evacuate (Europa Press Canarias via Getty Images)

Pedro Sanchez, the Spanish prime minister, also spoke during the press conference amid protests in Tenerife following his decision to allow MV Hondius to dock at the popular tourist destination.

He backed the decision for Spain to step in during a time of emergency.

Sanchez added: "Some recommended we ignore the call, a few even demanded it. The real question was why are we not going to protect our fellow citizens and help those in need if we have the power to do so? The world does not need more selfishness and fear, it needs countries that show solidarity and are willing to step up."