More than 120 people are under observation in their home countries or in quarantine in host countries following a hantavirus outbreak, while the virus-stricken liner MV Hondius, with its captain and crew, is en route to the Netherlands, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Friday, UNN reports citing The Guardian.
Details
Ghebreyesus said that in a letter he praised the residents of Tenerife, where the ship docked, for the "solidarity" they showed to the passengers and crew of the outbreak-stricken cruise liner MV Hondius, saying it "will not be forgotten."
According to him, the World Health Organization worked with approximately 30 governments, the crew, passengers, the cruise liner captain, cruise operators, and the people of Tenerife to manage the crisis.
According to the WHO chief, "the operation to transport the ship's passengers from Tenerife has been successfully completed – more than 120 people are under observation in their home countries or are in quarantine in host countries on the way to their final destination."
"Captain Jan Dobrogowski and his crew remain on board, show no signs of symptoms, and are expected to dock in the Netherlands in the coming days," according to Ghebreyesus.
In total, according to him, "10 cases have been registered, with eight confirmed to have the Andes variant and two probable, but the virus poses a low risk to the global community – no further deaths have been registered since May 2."
"Due to the six-week incubation period, more deaths may be registered, but this is not a sign of an expanding pandemic."
The WHO is working with more than 20 countries to understand the origin of the disease and coordinate research, Ghebreyesus added.
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Addendum
Earlier, WHO officials stated that during the operation in Tenerife, more than 120 people disembarked from the vessel over two days and boarded nine charter flights organized by eight countries. No passengers traveled on commercial flights.