How different countries are dealing with passengers from the ship

Key developments are emerging from the global stage. How are countries responding to hantavirus? 16 minutes ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleSam HancockReutersBritons were taken to a hospital in Merseyside on Sunday, having been flown from Tenerife on a chartered flightA Dutch cruise ship at the centre of an outbreak of hantavirus anchored on Sunday near Granadilla port, south-east Tenerife, Spain, allowing dozens of passengers from all over the world to begin making their way home. The MV Hondius set off from Argentina on 1 April, with 175 passengers and crew on board, according to the operator, Oceanwide Expeditions.

Thirty-two left the cruise when it stopped on the island of St Helena on 24 April. The first case of hantavirus was later confirmed by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 4 May. Three passengers - a Dutch couple and a German woman - died after travelling on the ship, with two of them confirmed to have had the virus.

The Details

The WHO has so far reported nine cases in total, seven confirmed and two suspected. Here's how countries are dealing with the virus:UKTwenty British nationals, one German national who lives in the UK and one Japanese passenger arrived at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside, north-west England late on Sunday. They will remain in hospital for 72 hours to receive medical checks and regular testing, before being allowed to return home where they must self-isolate for a further 42 days.

The group was flown to Manchester Airport on a chartered flight, with the UK's Health Security Agency (UKHSA) saying "strict infection control measures" were in place throughout the journey. Public Health Minister Sharon Hodgson said none of the passengers were symptomatic, but they will be monitored closely "as part of a precautionary isolation period". "With no cases or symptoms among them and our stringent monitoring and isolation measures, the risk to the public remains extremely low," she added.

A total of 31 British nationals - a mix of passengers and crew - set sail on the cruise. Some disembarked before the first confirmed case of hantavirus was reported on 4 May. USEighteen American passengers have returned to the US.

What Experts Say

Sixteen are being screened at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in the city of Omaha and two are in Atlanta. One of the group has tested positive and another has symptoms, according to the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). A document from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says people should self-isolate and be monitored for 42 days, during which time they should take their temperature once a day.

NetherlandsThe EU's guidance is similar to the UK's, with citizens returning to their respective member nations advised to "undergo medical triage by trained healthcare professionals". They should then self-isolate and monitor their symptoms for six weeks, seeking immediate medical help "if symptoms develop", according to advice from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.