Spanish passengers aboard a cruise ship that has been quarantined in the Atlantic because of a hantavirus outbreak said Friday they are less worried about the virus itself than about the hostile reception they expect when they reach land, as the ship approaches the Canary Islands and a global spotlight intensifies.
Two passengers, speaking by phone from the MV Hondius to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of those very concerns, described seeing sensationalist news coverage and online memes that treat those aboard as a threat to be avoided. “You go onto social media — they want to dynamite the boat. They want to sink the boat,” a Spanish man on the ship said. A Spanish woman added, “You see what’s out there and you realize you’re heading into the eye of a hurricane. Many people forget that in here there are more than 140 passengers. In reality, there are 140 human beings.”
Their anxiety has been stoked by what the World Health Organization calls misplaced COVID-19 pandemic flashbacks. “This is very different virus. I want to be unequivocal here,” Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s head of epidemic and pandemic preparedness, said on Thursday. “This is not the start of a COVID pandemic.” Hantavirus is typically spread through inhalation of contaminated rodent droppings and does not easily pass between people, though the Andes strain detected in the outbreak can spread person-to-person in rare cases.
Despite the scientific consensus, some political figures and anti-establishment groups have already adopted a defensive stance. The regional president of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo, told Spain’s El País newspaper he would not rest until the ship leaves Spanish waters and all passengers are dispatched to quarantine. Madrid’s regional leader, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, on Thursday said she disagreed with the decision to transfer the ship’s 14 Spanish nationals to a military hospital in the capital, where authorities have ordered a quarantine period. Meanwhile, the group Iustitia Europa, which rose to prominence challenging COVID-era restrictions, demanded the ship be denied entry, writing on X: “The Canary Islands cannot become Europe’s health laboratory … We demand transparency, responsibility, and protection for Spaniards to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past.”
Port workers in Tenerife also protested Thursday, saying they had not been given sufficient information about the safety measures planned for the vessel’s arrival. The more than 140 passengers and crew could begin disembarking as early as Sunday, Spanish authorities have said.
Despite the turmoil outside, life aboard the ship has been calm, according to the Spanish man. Passengers who leave their cabins for common areas read or attend talks while wearing masks and observing social distancing. Some join a 7:30 a.m. exercise group on deck. Both passengers interviewed said they would go on another cruise in the future. “For me, personally, traveling is a means to live out what I’m passionate about — which is observing nature and documenting nature,” the woman said. “Of course I would go on a cruise again.”