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Irish passengers from virus-hit ship flying home

News imageReuters A dark coloured plane taking off on a runway with a green hill in the background. The photo is from the front looking towards the executive-style two-engine aircraft.Reuters
The Irish Air Corps plane took off on Sunday afternoon

The two Irish citizens who were on board MV Hondius, the cruise ship which was struck by an outbreak of hantavirus, are on their way home on board an Irish Air Corps plane.

The Irish Department of Health confirmed the aircraft, which departed from the island on Sunday afternoon, would carry out an "aeromedical evacuation" of the passengers.

MV Hondius docked in Tenerife on Sunday morning.

Passengers from the UK, Turkey and the United States are also due to be evacuated later.

News imageReuters Four people are sitting on the back of a white boat with blue trim, and tyres hanging alongside. The four people are wearing blue protective raincoats and white facemasks.Reuters
Passengers were evacuated from the MV Hondius ship which was hit by an outbreak of Hantavirus.

Spanish authorities confirmed the assessment of the current health status of passengers and disembarkation process was underway and proceeding well.

The two Irish passengers have been reported as being in good health and have been following the isolation protocols.

The Department of Health said the repatriation plans had been put in place by the Irish government to transfer the two Irish passengers directly from Tenerife to Ireland on Sunday, contingent on their health status upon disembarkation.

Passengers from Spain and France have already disembarked the boat and returned by flight to their home countries where they are being quarantined.

As well as the Irish passengers, there are passengers from Turkey, the UK and the United States who will also be evacuated later today.

The Department of Health said the return of the passengers had been "carefully planned and guided by public health authorities to ensure safety for everyone-these measures protect communities while respecting the dignity and well being of those returning home".

Three people have died in the outbreak on the Dutch vessel, including two who were confirmed to have had hantavirus.

The cruise passengers face having to self-isolate after leaving Tenerife, a gruelling prospect as the virus has an incubation period of up to nine weeks.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended a 42-day quarantine period for the cruise passengers from their last exposure.

Earlier, British Army medics parachuted on to the remote Atlantic island of Tristan da Cunha to help a British national with suspected hantavirus.

The man left MV Hondius in mid-April at Britain's most remote inhabited overseas territory, where he lives.

He first reported symptoms two weeks after leaving the vessel and is said be in a stable condition while isolating.

Oxygen was also dropped from an RAF A400M on Saturday, with supplies at a "critical level" on the island, the Ministry of Defence said.

News imageMap showing the route of the cruise ship MV Hondius across the South Atlantic Ocean with a timeline of incidents. The ship departs Ushuaia, Argentina on 1 April. On 11 April, the first passenger dies at sea. The route continues north east toward Africa. On 24 April, the wife of the deceased passenger is flown from St Helena to South Africa. A marker near South Africa notes: 26 April, a woman dies in Johannesburg; 27 April, a second sick passenger is flown to hospital. On 2 May, another passenger dies onboard. On 3 May, the ship arrives at Cape Verde. A final note indicates the ship is due to arrive in Tenerife on 10 May. The route is shown as a red line with arrows and black dots marking key locations.