Live

Hantavirus live updates: 1 American tests positive, another symptomatic, HHS says

Teams will bring back Americans to the National Quarantine Unit in Nebraska.

Last Updated: May 10, 2026, 11:23 PM EDT

Passengers onboard the MV Hondius cruise ship began disembarking on Sunday morning in Tenerife, in the Canary Islands, where they were transferred to charter flights back to their home countries.

The total number of confirmed and probable cases of hantavirus onboard the ship has risen to nine, including two people confirmed to have died from the virus and one person who remains suspected to have died from the virus.

There are 17 U.S. citizens aboard the ship who are returning to the United States. As of Sunday, at least one passenger had tested positive for the virus, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

The American passenger who tested positive for hantavirus will be transported to the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit upon arrival.

Key Headlines

Here's how the news is developing.
May 8, 10:44 am

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.

Stock photo of a colorized electron micrograph of the Hantavirus.
Alfred Pasieka/Science Photo Lib/STOCK PHOTO/Getty Images

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.

Read more about hantavirus here.

May 10, 2026, 10:54 PM EDT

American who tested positive will be transported to biocontainment unit

The American passenger who tested positive for hantavirus will be transported to the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit, according to Nebraska Medicine, which hosts the facility.

The individual does not have any symptoms and was separated from other passengers during the flight through biocontainment measures. They will be receiving a follow-up test, Nebraska Medicine said.

The remaining passengers will go to the National Quarantine Unit for assessment and monitoring.

May 10, 2026, 10:43 PM EDT

1 American positive for hantavirus, another symptomatic, HHS says

The Department of Health and Human Services released a statement on Sunday saying one American has tested positive for hantavirus as the plane with 18 MV Hondius passengers is headed to the U.S.

Two of the passengers on the plane are traveling in the aircraft's biocontainment units "out of an abundance of caution," according to HHS.

The agency said that of the two, one passenger currently has mild symptoms and the other has tested PCR positive for the virus.

The plane is first going to the ASPR Regional Emerging Special Pathogen Treatment Center (RESPTC) at the University of Nebraska Medical Center before taking the passenger with mild symptoms to a second RESPTC, according to HHS.

"Upon arrival at each facility, each individual will undergo clinical assessment and receive appropriate care and support based on their condition," HHS said.

May 10, 2026, 6:05 PM EDT

American flight takes off from Spain

The plane carrying 18 passengers, including 17 Americans and one British national who is a U.S. resident, that disembarked from the MV Hondius has departed Spain and is headed back to the United States.

May 10, 2026, 4:03 PM EDT

American passengers arrive at Tenerife airport

The American passengers who disembarked from the MV Hondius have arrived at Tenerife airport in the Canary Islands.

A total 18 people will be on the American repatriation flight, including the 17 Americans and one British national who is a resident of the U.S., the Spanish minister of health told ABC News.

Passengers of the cruise ship MV Hondius, which was affected by a hantavirus outbreak, board a plane bound for the United States at Tenerife Sud airport, Canary Islands, Spain, May 10, 2026
Passengers of the cruise ship MV Hondius, which was affected by a hantavirus outbreak, board a plane bound for the United States at Tenerife Sud airport, Canary Islands, Spain, May 10, 2026. REUTERS/Borja Suarez
Borja Suarez/Reuters

-ABC News' Maggie Rulli

Related Topics

Sponsored Content by Taboola