The 147 passengers of the cruise Hondius, which is heading to the Canary Islands after a hantavirus outbreak was detected, will disembark next Sunday at sea in groups of up to five people and by nationality. From the cruise ship, they will transfer to some zodiacs arranged by the shipowner and from there they will head to the dock. Specifically, they will be moved to a specific area of the port of Granadilla “that meets the highest biological containment measures.” Their luggage will be grouped by nationality and disinfected by the ship’s crew before disembarkation, within the protocol established by Foreign Health. If any passenger shows symptoms before arrival, they will disembark first to be referred to the isolation unit of the Hospital de la Candelaria and their luggage will be managed by the shipping company. They would never reach land. After them, close contacts will disembark grouped by nationalities.
Once at the port, passengers will access buses provided by the shipping agent company, Gibunco Ship Agency (which declined to comment yesterday), to the airport, at the runway. There they will board their plane and travel to their country, where if their government deems it appropriate, they will undergo quarantine, as Spain will do. The US, UK, and the Netherlands have already confirmed sending planes to repatriate their nationals.
That short bus trip, just over ten minutes between the port of Granadilla and Tenerife South airport, will be carried out with strict safety measures to prevent infections. As stated in the Foreign Health protocol, passengers will board the bus at the port through the rear door and sit in a zig-zag pattern, with at least two meters distance between them. They will always wear masks and be isolated from the driver: the first three rows of the bus “will be closed off and isolated” from the rest of the vehicle. The driver will also enter through the front and will wear an FFP2 mask and gloves and must perform hand hygiene with hydroalcoholic gel. The bus windows will be open and the air conditioning turned off. The passengers themselves will place their luggage on the bus. If they need help, port staff wearing masks and gloves will assist. After the transfer, the buses will be cleaned and disinfected.
The passengers themselves will place their luggage on the bus and, after the transfer, the buses will be cleaned and disinfected
The access of the port pilot to the cruise ship has also been highly protocolized in case the ship cannot remain anchored and has to dock. The captain of the Hondius must guarantee a “clean corridor,” which must have been previously disinfected, to access the bridge which must be well ventilated, and the crew must avoid any contact with him. If contact occurs, a distance of at least one meter is established.
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All workers involved in the operation must provide their personal data to Foreign Health in case any of the measures fail and an infection occurs.
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The protocol established by Foreign Health states that the body on the cruise ship, one of the three deceased from hantavirus, will remain on board and be transported to its final destination, the Netherlands, along with the crew. The Canary Islands Government requested yesterday from the consul in the islands, Stanley Weytjens, and the Embassy team that the crew disembark with the ship to the Netherlands and that the ship’s disinfection be carried out there. The vice president of the Canary Islands Government, Manuel Domínguez, indicated yesterday after the meeting that the Embassy “viewed it favorably.” Still, the Foreign Health protocol states that the place of disinfection of the Hondius is yet to be decided.
