In a rare personal message to island residents on Saturday, Dr. Tedros that he would travel to Spanish territory to oversee the disembarkation of nearly 150 passengers and crew, following a hantavirus outbreak on board that has claimed three lives.
“It is not usual for me to write directly to the population of a single community, but today I feel that this is not only appropriate, it is necessaryhe said.
New COVID memories
“I know you’re worried…The pain of 2020 is still real and I don’t deny it for a single moment. But I need you to hear me clearly: this is not another COVID.”
The vessel is carrying the Andean strain of hantavirus, a severe respiratory disease, which is the only strain in which human-to-human transmission has been recorded (the box WHO’s hantavirus fact sheet here).
According to the latest WHO situation report, there have been eight cases linked to the ship, six of which have been laboratory confirmed. But Tedros stressed that the risk to the public remains “low”.
A ‘security corridor’
The Spanish authorities have established a strict protocol to ensure that the virus does not enter the local community. The ship docks at the industrial port of Granadilla on Sunday, which is away from residential areas.
Passengers will be transported in “sealed, guarded vehicles through a completely cordoned-off corridor” and repatriated directly to their home countries. “You won’t run into them. Your families won’t run into them,” the director general assured.
The WHO’s decision to request Spain’s assistance was made under international health regulations, which mandate that the nearest port with sufficient medical capacity must provide assistance during international health emergencies.
International solidarity
Tedros praised Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and the people of Tenerife for fulfilling what he described as a “moral duty”. The passengers on board represent 23 different countries and have been at sea for several weeks.
“Tenerife has been chosen because it has the medical capacity, the infrastructure and the humanity to help them reach safety,” Tedros said.
“I intend to travel to Tenerife to…personally pay my respects to an island that has responded to a difficult situation with grace, solidarity and compassion.”
The MV Hondius has been at the center of an international tracing effort after the first probable case – a male passenger traveling through South America – died on board in mid-April. Since then, cases have been reported in South Africa, the Netherlands and Switzerland.
Currently, there are no symptomatic passengers left on board the ship. A WHO expert is already on board to monitor the situation when it reaches the Canary Islands on Sunday.
Concluding his message, Tedros urged confidence in the public health preparations: “As I have said many times: viruses do not care about politics and they do not respect borders. The best immunity any of us has is solidarity.”
