To the people of Tenerife,
My name is Tedros, and I serve as the Director-General of the World Health Organization, the United Nations agency responsible for global public health. It is not common for me to write directly to the people of a single community, but today I feel it is not only appropriate, it is necessary.
I want to speak to you directly, not through press releases or technical briefings, but as one human being to another, because you deserve that.
I know you are worried. I know that when you hear the word “outbreak” and watch a ship sail toward your shores, memories surface that none of us have fully put to rest. The pain of 2020 is still real, and I do not dismiss it for a single moment.
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But I need you to hear me clearly: this is not another COVID. The current public health risk from hantavirus remains low. My colleagues and I have said this unequivocally, and I will say it again to you now.
The virus aboard the MV Hondius is the Andes strain of hantavirus. It is serious. Three people have lost their lives, and our hearts go out to their families. The risk to you, living your daily life in Tenerife, is low. This is the WHO’s assessment, and we do not make it lightly.
Right now, there are no symptomatic passengers on board. A WHO expert is on that ship. Medical supplies are in place. Spain’s authorities have prepared a careful, step-by-step plan: passengers will be ferried ashore at the industrial port of Granadilla, far from residential areas, in sealed, guarded vehicles, through a completely cordoned-off corridor, and repatriated directly to their home countries. You will not encounter them. Your families will not encounter them.
I also want to say something else, something that goes beyond the science.
I personally thanked Prime Minister Sanchez for Spain’s decision to receive this ship. I called it an act of solidarity and moral duty. Because that is what it is. I want you to know that the WHO’s request to Spain was not made arbitrarily. It was made in full accordance with the International Health Regulations, the legally binding framework that defines the rights and obligations of countries and the WHO when responding to public health events of international concern. Under those rules, the nearest port with sufficient medical capacity must be identified to ensure the safety and dignity of those on board. Tenerife met that standard. Spain honoured it. Nearly 150 people from 23 countries have been at sea for weeks, some of them grieving, all of them frightened, all of them longing for home. Tenerife has been chosen because it has the medical capacity, the infrastructure, and the humanity to help them reach safety.
And because I believe that so deeply, I will be there myself. I intend to travel to Tenerife to observe this operation firsthand, to stand alongside the health workers, port staff, and officials who are making it happen, and to personally pay my respects to an island that has responded to a difficult situation with grace, solidarity, and compassion. Your humanity deserves to be witnessed, not just acknowledged from a distance.
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.
Tenerife is demonstrating that solidarity today. The ship’s captain, Jan Dobrogowski, crew and the company operating the vessel have shown exemplary collaboration at this challenging time. On behalf of the World Health Organization, and on behalf of those passengers and their families around the world, I thank the people of Tenerife and everyone else involved.
Please take care of yourselves and of each other. Trust in the preparations that have been made. And know that the WHO stands with you, and with every person on that ship, every step of the way.
With respect, care, and gratitude,
Tedros
WHO’s response to hantavirus cases linked to a cruise ship
May 7, 2026
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, briefed media today on a cluster of hantavirus cases linked to a cruise ship, the MV Hondius.
Eight cases have been reported so far, including three deaths. Five of the 8 cases have been confirmed as hantavirus.
The hantavirus involved is the Andes virus, the only species known to be capable of limited transmission between humans, linked to close and prolonged contact.
Describing the situation, Dr Tedros said, “While this is a serious incident, WHO assesses the public health risk as low.” He noted that given the incubation period, “it’s possible that more cases may be reported.”
WHO is coordinating closely with multiple countries under the International Health Regulations or IHR, rules that define the rights and obligations of countries and WHO in responding to public health events. This event demonstrates why the IHR exist, demonstrating the importance of global cooperation and solidarity in responding to health threats that know no borders.
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“Our priorities are to ensure the affected patients receive care, that the remaining passengers on the ship are kept safe and treated with dignity, and to prevent any further spread of the virus,” Dr Tedros said.
WHO has taken a number of actions since it was notified of the situation on Saturday, 2 May 2026. The latest of these include deploying an expert on board the ship, to support a comprehensive medical assessment of all passengers and crew, while gathering critical information to evaluate their risk of infection.
WHO has arranged for the shipment of 2500 diagnostic kits from Argentina to laboratories in five countries to strengthen testing capacity. The Organization is also developing step-by-step operational guidance for the safe and respectful disembarkation and onward travel of passengers and crew when they arrive.
