Doctor who helped ship take care of passengers with hantavirus is isolated in Nebraska medical unit

Dr. Stephen Kornfeld, an American oncologist, is isolated in a biocontainment unit in Nebraska after volunteering to help passengers on the hantavirus-stricken cruise ship MV Hondius. He was among over 120 individuals evacuated and flown to different countries for quarantine. While 15 other Americans are being monitored, Kornfeld was placed in a separate unit after a nasal swab taken on the ship tested positive for hantavirus, though he currently has no symptoms. The World Health Organization has reported 11 hantavirus cases linked to the cruise, including three deaths. Kornfeld is awaiting further test results to confirm his status.

Eighteen American passengers evacuated from the cruise ship MV Hondius are under quarantine in the United States after one tested positive for the Andes virus, a rare, person-to-person transmissible strain of hantavirus. The ship, docked in Spain's Canary Islands, had another passenger exhibiting mild symptoms. Sixteen individuals are being monitored in Nebraska's national quarantine unit, while two, including the symptomatic passenger and their partner, are in Atlanta. Health officials emphasize the public risk remains "very, very low" as the Andes virus requires prolonged close contact with symptomatic individuals to spread. The CDC is exercising extreme caution, monitoring for any symptoms, even mild ones, as a precautionary measure.

Seventeen Americans who were on a cruise ship where hantavirus was detected are being repatriated to the United States. The passengers were evacuated from the M/V Hondius in Tenerife, Spain, where they were interviewed by CDC medical teams. They are expected to arrive in Nebraska via a chartered flight, landing at a facility with national quarantine and biocontainment units. Upon arrival, passengers will be assessed for risk based on their contact with symptomatic individuals. Those deemed low risk may return home under state and local public health guidance, while higher-risk individuals will be offered alternatives, including staying in Nebraska. The CDC emphasized that this situation is not comparable to COVID-19 and is being managed with established hantavirus protocols to avoid public panic.

US authorities are organizing a repatriation and quarantine effort for American passengers aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship, which is experiencing a hantavirus outbreak. The CDC is sending personnel to the Canary Islands to meet the ship, and American passengers are expected to be flown back to the US on a chartered flight. They will then undergo quarantine in Nebraska, home to specialized federal quarantine and biocontainment units. The State Department confirmed its involvement in the repatriation alongside the CDC and other agencies. Separately, two New Jersey residents are being monitored for potential exposure after contact with an individual who had recently disembarked the Hondius, though the risk to the public is considered very low.