Cruise passengers describe life on board MV Hondius after hantavirus outbreak: calm but uncertain

Four days into the Andes hantavirus outbreak on board the MV Hondius, the cruise ship still carries roughly 2,100 passengers, most of whom remain in their cabins. With the ship approaching the Canary Islands, BBC interviews with passengers describe an atmosphere of ordered calm punctuated by gnawing uncertainty.

One of the more detailed accounts comes from Roger Pearson, 67, a retired Anglican vicar travelling with his wife in a ninth-deck cabin. "The evenings are long. My wife reads, I look out at the water, and there isn't much else. The difference now is knowing the situation is serious — but feeling that the crew aren't really telling us enough," Pearson said. Updates appear on the cabin information screen twice daily; passengers have started calling them the "uncertainty panels."

Food service has shifted from buffet to single-package meals delivered to the cabins. "The food is mediocre but enough," Pearson said. "Breakfast is a sachet pack, lunch a sandwich and fruit, dinner a heated tray." Passengers cannot leave their cabins during the day; they are allowed onto the open deck only in 30-minute rotational windows for fresh air.

Medical screening on board is continuing. A European infection-control team coordinated with the WHO has joined the ship to support its staff in isolating and treating cases. Pearson said: "The medical staff look good — they are working as a team — but every day the case count creeps up a bit. It started at nine; three days later, eleven. That small rise keeps the question 'have we reached the end?' sitting in the air."

Other passengers spoke in the same tone. Sara Lindberg, 41, a Swedish nurse, has volunteered to help on board: "Our medical staff are excellent but tired. Over 24 hours I've watched the staffing go from one nurse to three patients on a day shift to one nurse to seven. There is stress, but no panic." Lindberg pointed out that most of the ship's passengers are over 60 — the high-risk demographic for severe hantavirus disease.

Another concern on board is the unresolved question of how a Patagonian rodent-borne pathogen made it to the Hondius. Contact tracing teams say the first passenger to fall ill had visited a rodent cave tour during a stop at Chile's Punta Arenas. That detail supports the leading hypothesis on the source, but a confirmed answer is still pending.

Margaret Holmes, 73, of the UK, has been on the ship with her husband for two weeks: "My husband is diabetic and needs insulin; I worry about supplies running thin. Staff have been supportive about that, but we don't know how long we'll be on board. We're told there'll be a 14-day quarantine in Tenerife — but everything has been extraordinary."

The shipping company has continued issuing press updates. CEO Marcus Reinhart said: "The safety of our passengers is paramount. The on-board medical team provides daily updates, and we are finalising our plan for the end of quarantine." Among passengers, however, the company's communication is widely seen as inadequate.

Dr Edith Maaß, the ship's chief physician, told the BBC: "We can say the case count on board is under control. The vast majority of passengers remain asymptomatic. But to speak in scientific terms, the full perimeter of the outbreak is not yet known. It may be modest, but the proper answer comes only at the end of the 14-21 day incubation window."

Pearson closed on a note of hope: "What's hard isn't being unable to leave the cabin. Reaching Tenerife isn't just about being on land; this experience is going to shape what we do next. After 14 days in quarantine, we'll have had a major pause in our lives. This holiday may have become one of the most significant decisions we've ever made." The Hondius is expected to reach the Canary Islands this weekend.