Hantavirus live updates: CDC team will bring American cruise ship passengers back to quarantine unit
Teams will bring back Americans to the National Quarantine Unit in Nebraska.
Last updated: Saturday, May 9, 2026 12:02AM GMT
Global health authorities are working to contain an outbreak of hantavirus aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship.
The total number of confirmed cases associated with the outbreak is increasing, health officials said. To date, three people who were aboard the ship are known to have died of the virus.
More than 100 passengers remain on the ship, and the World Health Organization is monitoring their health. Officials said that the "overall public health risk remains low" but that there may be some person-to-person spread.
Health officials in multiple states say they're monitoring some passengers who have returned to the U.S. after being aboard the ship for potential hantavirus infections.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it deployed a team earlier Friday to the Canary Islands, where the M/V Hondius is expected to dock in the coming days.
"The team will conduct an exposure risk assessment for each American passenger and provide recommendations for the level of monitoring required," the CDC said in a statement.
The American passengers will be evacuated on a U.S. government medical repatriation flight to Nebraska and transported to a quarantine center at the University of Nebraska in Omaha, the CDC said.
Another CDC team will deploy to Offutt Air Force Base in Bellevue, Nebraska, to "support public health assessment of returning passengers," the agency said.
May 08, 2026, 9:12 PM GMT
What to know about Nebraska quarantine unit set to receive Americans from hantavirus-stricken ship
Several American passengers from the cruise ship associated with a suspected hantavirus cluster are set to arrive at a quarantine unit in Nebraska over the next few days. Here's what to know about the facility.
The National Quarantine Unit, managed by Nebraska Medicine and the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), is the only federally funded quarantine unit in the U.S.
Passengers on the the hantavirus-stricken cruise ship, MV Hondius, watch epidemiologists board the boat in Praia, during their voyage to Spain's port of Tenerife, May 6, 2026.
Its 20 single-occupancy rooms with en-suite bathrooms contain individual negative air pressure systems to safely house individuals exposed to highly hazardous communicable diseases, according to Nebraska Medicine and UNMC.
The rooms also contain exercise equipment and WiFi connectivity for patients requiring longer stays.
Nebraska Medicine and UNMC also manage the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit (NBU), which provides medical care to patients with highly hazardous communicable diseases.
"Unit personnel consists of a voluntary staff of select physicians, nursing, nursing assistants and respiratory therapists specially trained in high-level isolation and bio preparedness," Nebraska Medicine and UNMC said on its website.
The NBU was activated in 2014 to care for U.S. citizens affected by the Ebola outbreak and medically evacuated from Africa and during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 to care for U.S. citizens from Wuhan, China, and the Diamond Princess Cruise ship.
May 08, 2026, 7:48 PM GMT
What is hantavirus and how does it spread?
Here's what you need to know about hantavirus including what it is, how it spreads, how it's treated and if there are any prevention methods:
What is hantavirus?
Hantaviruses are a family of viruses that can cause serious illnesses and death, according to the CDC.
How does hantavirus spread?
Hantaviruses may also spread from person to person, but that also is rare and only suspected for one subtype from South America, according to the WHO.
Nebraska quarantine unit says it's 'staffed and ready' to receive American passengers
The University of Nebraska, which hosts the quarantine facility the American cruise ship passengers are set to travel to, said the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Nebraska Medicine are "in close coordination with national partners" regarding the hantavirus cluster onboard the M/V Hondius.
"We cannot discuss specific communications at this time, but, our specialized teams, including the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit and National Quarantine Unit, are staffed and ready, if needed, to safely provide care while protecting our staff and the community," the statement read.
