Spain confirms second hantavirus case from MV Hondius cruise ship

Spain’s Ministry of Health confirmed Monday that a second Spanish national evacuated from the MV Hondius cruise ship has tested positive for hantavirus, raising the case count among Spanish passengers and crew to two.

The newly confirmed patient had been under quarantine at the Gómez Ulla Central Defense Hospital in Madrid since May 10, along with 13 other Spanish nationals from the vessel, and was identified as a close contact through ongoing epidemiological monitoring. Following the positive result, the patient was moved to the hospital’s High-Level Isolation Unit.

The second case lands as Spanish health officials are already managing an active outbreak response, with all 14 Spanish nationals from the ship having been held in quarantine for more than two weeks. Hantavirus, which is typically transmitted by rodents, does not spread person-to-person under normal circumstances, a fact officials leaned on Monday in their public reassurance.

The Ministry said the new case was detected within the isolation and control system already in place and does not change the risk level for the general population. This is a developing story.