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Foyer du MV Hondius : 5 choses à savoir au 7 mai

Bilan, confirmation de la souche Andes, traversée vers Tenerife et évacuation du 11 mai, hospitalisation à Zurich, position de l'OMS et surveillance argentine des rongeurs — synthèse sourcée du 7 mai.

Un mois après le déclenchement du foyer du MV Hondius, le tableau s'éclaircit. Les autorités espagnoles ont autorisé le navire à rejoindre Tenerife, le travail en laboratoire a confirmé l'agent pathogène suspecté, et le traçage des contacts a atteint trois continents — et s'étend désormais au-delà des passagers vers le personnel aérien. L'OMS a déployé un expert à bord et a fait expédier 2 500 kits de diagnostic depuis l'Argentine vers cinq pays. Voici ce qu'il faut savoir de la situation au 8 mai.

▶ Foyer MV Hondius — chiffres actuels

en direct
Décès confirmés
03
Cas confirmés en laboratoire
07
Cas suspects
03
Personnes à bord
147
Nationalités
23

Au 12 mai 2026 (OMS) · Chiffres issus des rapports de situation de l'OMS et des communications d'Oceanwide Expeditions.

1. Bilan : 8 cas, 3 décès à bord du MV Hondius

Selon le briefing OMS du 7 mai, le bilan s'établit à 8 cas — 5 confirmés en laboratoire et 3 encore en cours d'investigation — avec 3 décès confirmés. Le premier décès est un ressortissant néerlandais mort début avril. Sa femme a quitté le navire à Sainte-Hélène et est décédée dans un hôpital sud-africain le 26 avril. Une ressortissante allemande est morte à bord le 2 mai.

2. Confirmé : c'est la souche Andes, capable de transmission inter-humaine

Le 6 mai, les autorités ont confirmé que la souche en cause est le virus Andes — une variante rare capable de transmission inter-humaine dans certaines conditions, notamment lors de contacts étroits et prolongés. L'OMS a classé les hantavirus comme agents pathogènes émergents prioritaires, avec un fort potentiel de déclencher des urgences sanitaires internationales. La létalité peut atteindre 40 % dans les formes sévères de SPH.

3. Le navire en route vers Tenerife — évacuation à partir du 11 mai

Le MV Hondius a quitté le Cap-Vert mercredi pour rejoindre Tenerife, aux Canaries espagnoles. Le ministère espagnol de la Santé estime la traversée à environ trois jours et demi. L'évacuation des passagers commencera à partir du 11 mai depuis les Canaries, selon le ministère espagnol de l'Intérieur.

4. Trois évacuations médicales, et un nouveau cas suisse pris en charge à Zurich

Trois personnes ont été évacuées médicalement du navire mercredi : deux présentaient des symptômes aigus, et une troisième avait été en contact avec un cas confirmé. Un passager déjà débarqué a été admis à l'Hôpital universitaire de Zurich après avoir développé des symptômes, portant le total à 8 cas.

5. OMS : risque public « faible » ; l'Argentine envoie des experts à Ushuaïa

Le directeur général de l'OMS, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, a déclaré que le risque pour le grand public demeure faible, notant que la transmission inter-humaine nécessite un contact étroit et prolongé. L'Argentine a annoncé l'envoi d'experts à Ushuaïa — le port de départ du navire — pour capturer et analyser des rongeurs à la recherche d'une possible présence du virus, dans le cadre d'une stratégie renforcée de surveillance épidémiologique.

Chronologie complète

▣ Chronologie du foyer

  1. Departure from Ushuaia

    MV Hondius leaves Ushuaia, Argentina, with 88 passengers and 59 crew bound for Cape Verde via Antarctica and the South Atlantic.

  2. First fatality in Johannesburg

    A Dutch passenger who had disembarked at Saint Helena dies in Johannesburg. Initially attributed to acute respiratory syndrome of unknown origin.

  3. British passenger evacuated to Johannesburg

    A second seriously ill passenger, a British national, is evacuated to Johannesburg. Reportedly remains in intensive care.

  4. WHO notified of outbreak

    Oceanwide Expeditions notifies authorities of an acute respiratory syndrome cluster aboard the ship. WHO opens an investigation.

  5. WHO confirms three deaths

    WHO situation report cites three deaths and several seriously ill passengers. Hantavirus suspected; Andes strain considered.

  6. Ship anchors off Cape Verde — Pasteur Dakar samples taken

    MV Hondius anchors off Cape Verde awaiting docking authorisation. Specialists from the Institut Pasteur de Dakar collect samples from symptomatic passengers for virological analysis and sequencing in the Senegalese capital.

  7. Andes virus confirmed in Swiss passenger

    A Swiss passenger who had left the ship earlier tests positive for the Andes strain of hantavirus, confirming the suspected pathogen. Three other seriously ill passengers are evacuated for medical care.

  8. Parallel case confirmed in Bariloche (Argentina)

    A 45-year-old man is hospitalised in Bariloche (Patagonia, the natural range of the Andes virus reservoir) with confirmed hantavirus, in Intermediate Care. Two close contacts (partner and son) are isolated. Samples are sent to Instituto Malbrán to identify the strain — northern Argentine variants do not transmit between people, unlike the Andes virus circulating in this region. Not directly linked to the MV Hondius cluster, but provides parallel epidemiological context.

  9. Andes strain officially confirmed · WHO statement on low public risk

    Authorities officially confirm the strain involved is the Andes virus, the only hantavirus capable of human-to-human transmission under close prolonged contact. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus states the risk to the general public remains low. Hantaviruses remain on WHO's priority emerging-pathogen list; HPS case fatality can reach 40% in severe presentations.

  10. Ship departs Cape Verde for Tenerife · evacuation set for May 11

    Spain authorises the MV Hondius to dock in the Canary Islands. The ship leaves Cape Verde for Tenerife. The Spanish health ministry estimates the crossing at about three and a half days. Passenger evacuation will begin from May 11 according to the Spanish interior ministry.

  11. France identifies a contact case · activates national response

    A French national who shared a flight to Johannesburg with one of the evacuated patients is identified as a contact case. France activates the Direction générale de la santé, Santé publique France, COREB and the Centre national de référence des hantavirus. The foreign affairs ministry and CORRUSS coordinate to prepare the repatriation of French nationals still aboard.

  12. New Swiss case admitted to Zurich University Hospital

    A passenger who had already disembarked is admitted to the Zurich University Hospital after developing symptoms, bringing the total cases to 8. Three other people are medically evacuated from the ship: two with acute symptoms and a third in close contact with a confirmed case.

  13. Argentina dispatches experts to Ushuaia for rodent surveillance

    Argentina announces it is sending experts to Ushuaia — the MV Hondius's departure port — to capture and analyse rodents for "possible presence of the virus", as part of an enhanced epidemiological surveillance strategy. A positive find at the embarkation environment would point to pre-departure exposure.

  14. Flight attendant hospitalised in the Netherlands · contact with Johannesburg patient

    A flight attendant in the Netherlands has been hospitalised with mild symptoms after a documented contact with the Dutch woman who died of hantavirus in Johannesburg on April 26. The case extends contact tracing from passengers to airline staff and is the first documented possible secondary case in Europe linked to the MV Hondius cluster. Source: BNO News, citing RTL.

  15. WHO operational response · expert aboard, 2,500 diagnostic kits

    WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus issues an official briefing. Confirmed figures: 8 cases, 5 lab-confirmed, 3 deaths. WHO has deployed an expert aboard the MV Hondius, arranged shipment of 2,500 diagnostic kits from Argentina to five countries, and is developing operational guidance for safe disembarkation. International coordination via the IHR. Public risk assessment: low.

  16. CDC activates Emergency Operations Center at Level 3

    The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention activates its Emergency Operations Center at Level 3 (lowest emergency activation tier) for the MV Hondius outbreak. CDC reassigns epidemiologists, scientists and physicians to a dedicated response team. The agency states: "The risk to the general public remains low, but the situation is being actively monitored." (Source: ABC News.)

  17. URGENT · mutation question raised by online expert commentary

    Independent online commentary (Adam Cochran, @adamscochran) flags the Dutch flight attendant case as potentially significant: the patient was reportedly removed from the flight before departure, meaning the attendant had minimal contact, yet the attendant has developed symptoms within an unusually short window. Andes virus normally requires close prolonged contact and has a longer incubation period. The case raises the question of a possible mutation, though no mutation has been confirmed by any health authority. WHO has not changed its low public-risk assessment.

  18. MV Hondius arrives at Granadilla Port (Tenerife) · hazmat disembarkation

    Expected port arrival around midday at Granadilla Port, Tenerife. Over 100 passengers remaining on board (23 nationalities). Passengers will wear hazmat gear during transfer. ABC News reports up to 12 suspected cases (the WHO 7 May briefing cited 8, including a British national reported on Tristan da Cunha). Reconciliation of figures expected after the on-port medical assessment.

  19. New suspected contact case · WHO mentions further possible cases

    BFMTV reports a new suspected contact case among the passengers who travelled near the Dutch woman who died of hantavirus during her medical-evacuation journey. WHO confirms that further possible cases may emerge as contact tracing extends to fellow travellers and crew. Argentina states that the origin of the contagion is impossible to confirm at this stage; rodent surveillance in Ushuaia continues.

  20. WHO Disease Outbreak News · 6 lab-confirmed · 75 contacts in South Africa

    WHO publishes a detailed Disease Outbreak News update. Total reported: 8 cases (3 deaths). Andes virus is now lab-confirmed in 6 cases (up from 5). 4 patients currently hospitalised. One previously-suspected case is reclassified as a non-case after negative PCR and serology. An adult male who disembarked at Tristan da Cunha on 14 April is stable, in isolation, and classified as a probable case until lab confirmation. 75 contacts have been identified in South Africa, of whom 42 are being actively traced and monitored. WHO + ECDC experts are now on board to support the operation. WHO advises against routine testing or quarantine of asymptomatic contacts.

  21. Ship docks at Granadilla · evacuation begins · 94 passengers off Day 1

    The MV Hondius docks at Granadilla Port, Tenerife, on Sunday 10 May. Disembarkation begins in order of homeward-bound flight departure times — Spanish nationals first. The first evacuation flight takes off at 13:31 local time. By late evening, 7 evacuation flights have departed transporting 94 passengers (19 nationalities) to six European countries and Canada. Travellers escorted to shore by personnel in full-body protective gear and breathing masks. Operation led by Spanish authorities and the WHO.

  22. All 122 individuals evacuated · 16 Americans to Nebraska, 2 to Atlanta

    Evacuation completes: 122 individuals repatriated (87 passengers + 35 crew). 16 American passengers arrive at the University of Nebraska Medical Center — 15 admitted to the quarantine unit, 1 to the biocontainment unit. 2 additional American passengers flown to Atlanta for further assessment and care. Two new positives detected post-evacuation: one French passenger, one US passenger. Total confirmed and probable cases rise to 10. Some crew stay aboard to sail the ship to Rotterdam for full disinfection.

  23. WHO Tedros: "This is not another COVID"

    WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, in a UN News statement, emphasises that the risk to the wider public remains low, stating "This is not another COVID" and "the risk to the public is low". The operation is now in post-evacuation surveillance phase, with national health authorities of repatriating countries (France, Netherlands, Germany, UK, US, Canada and others) handling contact tracing and isolation of confirmed and probable cases.

Ce qu'il faut surveiller maintenant

  1. L'arrivée à Tenerife, attendue autour du 10 mai, et le protocole de réception au sol.
  2. Le séquençage par Pasteur Dakar des échantillons prélevés le 4 mai : confirmer que le cluster est génétiquement Andes renforcerait l'hypothèse d'une transmission partielle à bord.
  3. La surveillance argentine des rongeurs à Ushuaïa : une découverte positive dans l'environnement d'embarquement orienterait fortement vers une exposition avant le départ.
  4. L'évolution des patients britannique et suisse, qui modifiera le taux de létalité global et l'arithmétique de la perception publique.

La situation continue d'évoluer. Chaque chiffre de ce site renvoie à une source publique. Nous mettons à jour dès que l'OMS, les autorités sanitaires espagnoles, l'Institut Pasteur ou les grands médias internationaux publient une nouvelle information.

▣ Sources

▣ Recevez les alertes du foyer

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Foyer du MV Hondius : 5 choses à savoir au 7 mai · Hantavirus Live