Hantavirus live updates as British passengers arrive at Arrowe Park

British passengers and crew from a cruise ship where hantavirus broke out have arrived in Merseyside where they will isolate. Twenty people from the MV Hondius were repatriated to the UK from Tenerife on Sunday, May 10, before being transported to Arrowe Park Hospital in Wirral where they are expected to remain for 72 hours.

Three people died following the outbreak of the virus on the ship, with one of those, a 69-year-old Dutch woman, confirmed to have had the disease which is found in rodents. Two other passengers have also died, with their cases currently being investigated.

The ECHO revealed the plans to bring the Britons to Merseyside over the weekend, with the ship docking in Tenerife on Sunday morning. Read full story here

The 20 British people who have returned from Tenerfife will be held at the site on Wirral for 72 hours, as they're checked over by medics.

According to a statement from several hospital trusts, they will be taken to a "managed setting for clinical assessment and testing"

If the passengers remain without symptoms, they will be asked to isolate at home for 42 further days.

Pictures taken by ECHO photographer Iain Watts shows the coaches arriving at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside, which was the UK's initial Covid quarantine site.

Janelle Holmes, chief executive of Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, told the media that Arrowe Park would do "welfare checks on each individual"

She added: "There's nobody being transferred to us that has been symptomatic in any way.

"There's no impact on the hospital. Services are running as normal, patients should still attend their appointments."

[The repatriated Britons have arrived at Arrowe Park]

The repatriated Britons have arrived at Arrowe Park(Image: Liverpool ECHO)

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ECHO reporter Ben Haslam is outside of the Arrowe Park facility this evening. The coaches carrying the former cruise passengers has now arrived after an extremely long day for all on board.

A large police convoy followed closely behind the coaches. The driver and front passenger were pictured in blue PPE and masks. All passengers appear to have been in masks.

British passengers evacuated from a cruise ship hit by a hantavirus outbreak have arrived at Arrowe Park after being repatriated from Tenerife. A chartered Titan Airways flight transported the passengers from the Canary Islands, landing at Manchester Airport on Sunday evening.

The coaches carrying the former passengers arrived at around 10.30pm this evening. Emergency services in the North West said they expected the passengers to be housed and provided with clothes at the managed setting for up to 72 hours.

The Arrowe Park facility has six storeys of self-contained flats with their own bedrooms, en-suite bathrooms, kitchen and lounge facilities.

The World Health Organisation released a briefing note earlier that offered policy guidance for countries in relation to the Andes strain of the hantavirus. It said:

• Suspected case: Anyone who shared space with or visited where a probable/confirmed Andes case was (where that individual has symptoms matching the illness)

• Probable case: A person matching the description of a suspected case that has been evaluated by a healthcare professional and has symptoms "compatible" with the illness

• Confirmed case: A person with a lab confirmation of the Andes strain through testing

The UK government is working closely with the UKHSA and NHS to ensure all returning nationals receive appropriate care and support.

All British passengers and crew on board the MV Hondius will be asked to isolate for up to 45 days upon returning to the UK. UKHSA will closely support and monitor these individuals, with testing as required.

Follow up is already underway for individuals who may have been in contact with cases and have since returned to the UK or are in UK Overseas Territories. The UK government will ensure those self-isolating are given appropriate support.

The risk to the general public remains very low.

Elsewhere, The Irish Government jet has landed in Ireland after being sent to Tenerife to evacuate two passengers who were on a virus-hit cruise ship.

Spanish authorities have been conducting health checks and disembarking passengers. The Irish aircraft flew to and from the island from Baldonnel Aerodrome on Sunday.

In a statement, the department said: The return of passengers and crew from MV Hondius has been carefully planned and guided by public health authorities to ensure safety for everyone these measures protect communities while respecting the dignity and well-being of those returning home.

[A ambulance leaving Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel]

A ambulance leaving Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel(Image: PA)

The Foreign secretary has shared a post to X after the flight carrying British cruise ship passengers landed in Manchester Airport this evening

Passengers leaving a plane at Manchester Airport, after being repatriated to the UK from cruise ship MV Hondius, which was hit by hantavirus.

The passengers will be quarantined at Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside to protect against the spread of the illness should any of them be infected.

[Passengers leaving a plane at Manchester Airport after being repatriated to the UK from cruise ship MV Hondius]

Passengers leaving a plane at Manchester Airport after being repatriated to the UK from cruise ship MV Hondius(Image: PA)

The 20 people on board the repatriation flight from Manchester Airport will now be taken to the Arrowe Park site, where they will isolate for 72 hours now. From there, if they remain asymptomatic, they will then be allowed to isolate at home for 42 further days.

The hospital, used as the UK's initial Covid quarantine site, had blue covered fences erected around accommodation blocks on Sunday morning.

[Coaches arriving at next to a plane (left) at Manchester Airport carrying passengers that have been repatriated to the UK from cruise ship MV Hondius]

Coaches arriving at next to a plane (left) at Manchester Airport carrying passengers that have been repatriated to the UK from cruise ship MV Hondius(Image: PA)

The Andes strain of hantavirus has been identified as the one that spread on the ship. It circulates in parts of South America, including Argentina and Chile, and has been responsible for person-to-person transmission in the past.

If you think you had contact with a person with Andes virus and are experiencing symptoms, contact a medical professional immediately.

Avoid spread between people by:

• Washing hands frequently
• Avoiding kissing and sexual contact with someone who may have Andes virus
• Avoid sharing drinks, cigarettes, hookah, and vapes with someone who may have Andes virus
• Avoid sharing eating utensils or eating food from the same plate or bowl as someone who may have Andes virus
• Maintaining distance from someone who may have Andes virus

The World Health Organisation said: "Transmission of hantaviruses to humans occurs from contact with contaminated urine, droppings or saliva of infected rodents. Infection may also occur, although less commonly, through rodent bites.

"Activities that involve contact with rodents such as cleaning enclosed or poorly ventilated spaces, farming, forestry work and sleeping in rodent-infested dwellings increase exposure risk."

The health organisation said that to date, human-to-human transmission has been documented only for Andes virus in the Americas and remains uncommon.

When it occurs, transmission between people has been associated with close and prolonged contact, particularly among household members or intimate partners, and appears most likely during the early phase of illness, when the virus is more transmissible.

The World Health Organisation has shared details about hantavirus on its website. It said: "Hantaviruses are zoonotic viruses that naturally infect rodents and are occasionally transmitted to humans. Infection in people can result in severe illness and often death, although the diseases vary by type of virus and geographical location.

"In the Americas, infection has been known to lead to hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS), a rapidly progressive condition affecting the lungs and heart, while in Europe and Asia hantaviruses have been known to cause haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS), which primarily affects the kidneys and blood vessels."

Guidance continued: "While there is no specific treatment that cures hantavirus diseases, early supportive medical care is key to improve survival and focuses on close clinical monitoring and management of respiratory, cardiac and kidney complications. Prevention depends largely on reducing contacts between people and infected rodents."

Emergency services in the North West of England said they expected the passengers to be kept in the "managed setting" for up to 72 hours.

UKHSA said after leaving Arrowe Park, the former cruise passengers will be asked to self-isolate for a further 42 days as a precaution.

The Trust and Arrowe Park Hospital is operating as normal. A spokesperson said there is no risk to patients, visitors or staff and people "should continue to come forward for care as usual."

World Health Organisation (WHO) director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference in Tenerife on Sunday that the outbreak was "not another Covid and the risk to the public is low."

Chief Executive Janelle Holmes from Wirral University Teaching Hospital Trust, said to Sky News: "People will be continuously assessed and screened as they arrive. There is nobody being transferred to us that has been symptomatic in any way, these are guests who have been in potential contact with other passengers on the boat and we need to be absolutely clear that they are well over the next few weeks and days.

"They are coming with little belongings so we make sure they have everything they need, from contacting friends and family to welfare checks. The specialist medical teams will be on site with the Brits at all times. We will respond to any issues that may occur when they are with us."

She added: "Because of the fact that we were the isolation centre for Covid before it was a pandemic, that may trigger some people to feel more anxious but this is an understood known virus that can be managed appropriately so it managed very different and the risk is low. It is not like covid or flu or those type of viruses.

"we have a self contained flat facility close to a hospital if that is required. If any guests had symptoms they would go over to Liverpool to the infectious disease hospital. The proximity and the fact they are close to the hospital, as well as Arrowe Park doing well for Wuhan guests and isolate them safely."

Ms Holmes continued: "Reassurance this is not covid, this is not the start of another covid. This is not the start of another pandemic. I want to say a massive thank you to the response from all the partners including the police and fire service, Wirral council and UK protection Agency and NHS England."

The British repatriation flight from Tenerife has landed back in the UK. It is carrying the 20 Britons who were evacuated from the MV Hondius after a hantavirus outbreak onboard.

They will now be taken to Arrowe Park hospital site where they will be kept for 72 hours under strict infection control measures.

The site at Arrowe Park was used during the COVID pandemic, for Britons being flown back from China at the start of the epidemic.

If the passengers remain without symptoms, they will be asked to isolate at home for 45 days.

The flight carrying the 20 Britons is now approaching Manchester Airport

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The flight carrying British passengers from Tenerife approaching Manchester

The chartered flight is due to land at Manchester Airport between 8pm and 9pm.

The 20 British passengers will then be transferred to Arrowe Park Hospital.

Passengers evacuated from the ship have been told to leave their luggage onboard, bringing only a small bag with essentials such as their phone and passport.

Spanish authorities said on Sunday that no passengers on the ship were showing symptoms of the virus, with 14 Spanish nationals who formed the first group to be evacuated from the vessel being flown to a hospital in Madrid.

WHO director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference in Tenerife on Sunday that the outbreak was "not another Covid and the risk to the public is low".

The ECHO understands the chartered flight carrying the Britons is due in the UK this evening before they are then transferred to Arrowe Park Hospital.

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Handout photo dated 09/05/26 issued by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of a tandem parachute jump with the ICU Nurse and a paratrooper from 16 Air Assult, as a specialist Army team and medical personnel have been parachuted on to the British overseas territory Tristan da Cunha with medical aid and equipment after a British national disembarked from the cruise ship MV Hondius on to the island, where they live, with a suspected case of hantavirus. Six paratroopers, an RAF consultant and Army nurse from 16 Air Assault Brigade parachuted, while oxygen supplies and medical aid was dropped on to the remote island, which is normally only accessible by boat. Issue date: Sunday May 10, 2026. PA Photo. The RAF A400M transport aircraft flew from RAF Brize Norton to Ascension Island, supported by an RAF Voyager, before heading to Tristan da Cunha. Photo credit should read: Georgia Callaway/MoD/Crown Copyright/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.

Paratroopers landed on a golf course covered in rocks to supply medical personnel and oxygen to Britains most remote overseas territory as it deals with a suspected hantavirus case, an Army commander said.

The UK Health Security Agency confirmed on Friday that a British national had disembarked from the cruise ship MV Hondius to the South Atlantic island of Tristan da Cunha, where they live, with a suspected case of hantavirus.

Six paratroopers, an RAF consultant and an Army nurse from 16 Air Assault Brigade were parachuted to the island, which is normally only accessible by boat, while oxygen supplies and medical aid were also dropped.

An RAF A400M transport aircraft flew from RAF Brize Norton to Ascension Island, supported by an RAF Voyager, before heading to Tristan da Cunha.

Tristan da Cunha, in a group of volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, is Britains most remote inhabited overseas territory accessible only by boat, it has no airstrip, and a population of 221.

Brigadier Ed Cartwright, the commander of 16 Air Assault Brigade, said there was 7,000 miles and about 56 hours between help being requested and having those parachutists and those medical stores on the ground.

Describing the mission, he told Sky News: No airstrip, high winds, very difficult to reach, and over a week for a boat, and the patient, as I understand, was on oxygen, and that oxygen supply was running out so we had very few options.

I think the soldiers will have had a great time, but its pretty risky.

Parachuting has some inherent dangers. The winds were reasonably high.

The parachuters Ive spoken to them they described it to me as a pretty tasty jump.

They would have got out of the aircraft, had to turn straight into wind to avoid being pushed past the island and into the Atlantic, and then had a very difficult descent down through the cloud and then on to the drop zone, which was a golf course covered in rocks.

The Army commander said there is a plan to get them back.

He added: There are some ships being moved and some further medical support being prepared, so well be able to extract them safely in due course.

The MoD said it was the first time medical personnel had been parachuted in to provide humanitarian support.

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said the safety of all members of the British family is the top priority.

She said: We will continue to work closely with international authorities and the Tristan da Cunha administration, keeping those affected informed and ensuring the right support is in place in the UK and across the Overseas Territories.

Drone footage shows fencing erected at a quarantine hospital in Merseyside, ahead of British passengers on a cruise ship hit by a hantavirus outbreak being transferred to the hospital used as the UKs quarantine site at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Evacuations of passengers from a cruise ship hit by a hantavirus outbreak have begun, as Britons on board prepare to be flown home to isolate at the UKs initial Covid quarantine site.

The MV Hondius arrived in Tenerife on Sunday morning, with Spain beginning evacuations of the ship by nationality.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said British passengers will be transferred to an isolation facility at Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral, Merseyside, after being repatriated to the UK on a chartered flight.

Officials from the UKHSA and Foreign Office were due to greet the MV Hondius when it docked in Tenerife, one of Spains Canary Islands, with Britons on board tested for hantavirus before they disembark.

If people test negative and are not displaying symptoms, they will be taken straight to a chartered repatriation flight staffed by medical professionals and containing personal protective equipment such as face masks.

In a post on social media on Sunday morning, World Health Organisation (WHO) director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said: The disembarkment of the first group of MV Hondius passengers has started.

WHO experts on the ground are working with the Spanish Health Ministry on the epidemiological assessment of the passengers and coordinating charter flights with the Interior Ministry.

After returning to the UK, the passengers will be housed in an accommodation block on the Arrowe Park site away from the hospitals public areas to receive clinical assessments and testing as a precautionary measure.

The hospital was used as the UKs initial Covid quarantine site, with blue tarped fences around accommodation blocks being erected on Sunday morning.

Emergency services in the North West of England said they expected the passengers to be kept in the managed setting for up to 72 hours.

They added that the NHS Trust and hospital is operating as normal with no risk to patients, visitors or staff and people should continue to come forward for care as usual.

Following their isolation, public health specialists will assess whether passengers can isolate at home or at another suitable location based on their living arrangements.

Britons returning to the UK will stay in self-isolation for 45 days and will not be allowed to take public transport to their homes.

WHO said on Saturday there were no symptomatic passengers on board the MV Hondius, as the UKHSA said the risk to the public remains very low.

The UN health agency said there had been six confirmed hantavirus cases linked to MV Hondius and four patients were currently in hospital.

It added that a total of eight cases, including three deaths, had been reported with one previous suspected case being reclassified after testing negative for hantavirus.

The UKHSA said three British nationals are included in the eight cases two involve confirmed hantavirus and another one is suspected.

The two confirmed British cases are in hospital in South Africa and the Netherlands, while the third British national with a suspected case is being supported on the British overseas territory of Tristan da Cunha where they live.

Six paratroopers, an RAF consultant and Army nurse from 16 Air Assault Brigade were parachuted onto the South Atlantic island, while oxygen supplies and medical aid was also dropped on Tristan da Cunha, which is normally only accessible by boat.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said it was the first time medical personnel had been parachuted in to provide humanitarian support.

[0_01KR8DR6M4S0WAA6BXMC0M39WE.jpg]

Handout photo dated 09/05/26 issued by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of a specialist Army team and medical personnel who have been parachuted on to the British overseas territory Tristan da Cunha with medical aid and equipment after a British national disembarked from the cruise ship MV Hondius on to the island, where they live, with a suspected case of hantavirus. Six paratroopers, an RAF consultant and Army nurse from 16 Air Assault Brigade parachuted, while oxygen supplies and medical aid was dropped on to the remote island, which is normally only accessible by boat. Issue date: Sunday May 10, 2026. PA Photo. The RAF A400M transport aircraft flew from RAF Brize Norton to Ascension Island, supported by an RAF Voyager, before heading to Tristan da Cunha. Photo credit should read: MoD/Crown Copyright/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.

By Rob Freeman and Sam Hall, Press Association

A specialist Army team and medical personnel have been parachuted on to the British overseas territory Tristan da Cunha with medical aid and equipment, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said.

The UK Health Security Agency confirmed on Friday that a British national disembarked from the cruise ship MV Hondius on to the island, where they live, with a suspected case of hantavirus.

Six paratroopers, an RAF consultant and Army nurse from 16 Air Assault Brigade parachuted, while oxygen supplies and medical aid was dropped on to the remote island, which is normally only accessible by boat.

The RAF A400M transport aircraft flew from RAF Brize Norton to Ascension Island, supported by an RAF Voyager, before heading to Tristan da Cunha.

The MoD said it was the first time medical personnel had been parachuted in to provide humanitarian support.

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said the safety of all members of the British family is the top priority.

She said: We will continue to work closely with international authorities and the Tristan da Cunha administration, keeping those affected informed and ensuring the right support is in place in the UK and across the Overseas Territories.

The MV Hondius arrived in Tenerife on Sunday morning, and British passengers will be repatriated to isolate at the hospital used as the UKs initial Covid quarantine site, as the UKHSA said the risk to the public remains very low.

UKHSA said passengers will be transferred to an isolation facility at Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral, Merseyside, after being repatriated to the UK on a chartered flight.

Officials from the UKHSA and Foreign Office were due to greet the MV Hondius when it docked in Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands, with Britons on board tested for hantavirus before they disembark.

If people test negative and are not displaying symptoms, they will be taken straight to a chartered repatriation flight staffed by medical professionals and containing personal protective equipment such as face masks.

After returning to the UK, the passengers will be housed in an accommodation block on the Arrowe Park site away from the hospitals public areas to receive clinical assessments and testing as a precautionary measure.

The hospital was used to house British citizens returning from Wuhan, China, in January 2020 at the start of the Covid pandemic.

The World Health Organisation said on Saturday there were no symptomatic passengers on board the ship.

The UN health agency said there had been six confirmed hantavirus cases linked to MV Hondius and four patients were currently in hospital.

It added that a total of eight cases, including three deaths, had been reported with one previous suspected case being reclassified after testing negative for hantavirus.

The UKHSA said three British nationals are included in the eight cases two involve confirmed hantavirus and another one is suspected.

The two confirmed British cases are in hospital in South Africa and the Netherlands, while the third British national in Tristan da Cunha was being supported by health services on the remote South Atlantic island.

Professor Robin May, chief scientific officer at UKHSA, said: We continue to work at pace with our international partners to ensure the safe repatriation of British nationals from the MV Hondius.

The safety and wellbeing of those on board remains our number one priority. Established infection control measures will be in place at every step of the journey, and passengers will receive full support throughout, including during their period of isolation.

Janelle Holmes, the chief executive of Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, said in a letter to staff: We have been asked by NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) to house the guests, recognising how quickly and positively we responded to and supported the repatriation of British nationals from Wuhan and the Diamond Princess prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.

We will be welcoming the guests on Sunday May 10 2026 and they will all be screened for symptoms before they arrive on site; nobody showing any symptoms will be transferred here.

If anyone becomes unwell after arrival, they will be transferred quickly to another facility.

Emergency services in the north west of England said they expected the passengers to be kept in a managed setting for up to 72 hours.

Public health specialists will then assess whether they can isolate at home or at another suitable location based on their living arrangements.

Britons returning to the UK will stay in self-isolation for 45 days and will not be allowed to take public transport to their homes.

The UKHSA said on Saturday that the risk to the general public "remains very low".

Professor Robin May, chief scientific officer at UKHSA, said: "We continue to work at pace with our international partners to ensure the safe repatriation of British nationals from the MV Hondius.

"The safety and wellbeing of those on board remains our number one priority. Established infection control measures will be in place at every step of the journey, and passengers will receive full support throughout, including during their period of isolation."

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has ten planes in place for repatriating people from Tenerife.

In a news briefing tonight, May 9, WHO director secretary Tedros Ghebreyesus said concerns shared by people living on the island are "justified" as well as reiterating "this disease is not covid and have said it many times".