PASSENGERS stuck onboard the hantavirus-ridden ship currently sailing towards the Canary Islands are set to be repatriated to their home countries as soon as the vessel docks, Spanish health officials have said.
The 14 Spanish nationals currently stranded on the MV Hondius will be examined in Tenerife before boarding a military flight to Madrid, health minister Monica Garcia confirmed in a press conference on Wednesday.
She said the Spanish passengers impacted are from Catalunya, Madrid, Asturias, Castilla y Leon, Galicia and Valencia.
The remaining 140 passengers and crew are currently asymptomatic, she added, and will be repatriated as soon as the ship docks in the Canaries in three to four days’ time.
It comes after health authorities in Switzerland confirmed that a former passenger is being treated in a Zurich hospital after developing severe breathing problems and testing positive for the virus.
Doctors say the patient is isolated and contact tracing is now underway.
According to El Pais, a group of 23 people left the cruise ship two weeks ago during a stopover on the island of Saint Helena.
The international tracing of these passengers is being managed by the World Health Organisation.
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