90-Second Read: American evacuated from Hantavirus-hit cruise ship tests positive

Passengers evacuated from the Hantavirus-hit cruise ship have started flying home aboard military and government planes after the vessel anchored in the Canary Islands. Earlier, officials from the Spanish Health Ministry, the World Health Organization and the cruise company Oceanwide Expeditions had said none of the more than 140 people who were then on the Hondius had shown symptoms of the virus. Three people have died since the outbreak began, and five people who left the ship earlier are infected with Hantavirus. Passengers were evacuated off the MV Hondius following its arrival in Tenerife, the largest island in the Spanish archipelago off the West African coast.

Hantavirus usually spreads when people inhale contaminated residue of rodent droppings, and the disease is not easily transmitted between people. But the Andes virus detected in the cruise ship outbreak may be able to spread between people in rare cases. Elsewhere, British Army medics parachuted onto the remote South Atlantic territory of Tristan da Cunha, where one of the 221 residents has a suspected case of Hantavirus. One passenger will be transported to the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit upon arrival, while other passengers will go to the National Quarantine Unit for assessment and monitoring.

The aircraft carrying the Americans was due to arrive in Omaha, Nebraska, early Monday. The Americans would first be taken to the University of Nebraska, which has a federally funded quarantine facility, to assess whether they have been in close contact with any symptomatic people and their risk levels for spreading the virus. Japan's Foreign Ministry said a Japanese national arrived in Britain on a chartered flight arranged by the British government and will be under health monitoring by British authorities for up to 45 days. Norway sent an ambulance plane to the island with personnel trained to transport patients with high-risk infections, its Directorate for Civil Protection told public broadcaster NRK.

Jay Bhattacharya, said Americans would first be flown to the University of Nebraska. He made the comments before the report one passenger had tested positive. Authorities have said the disembarking passengers and crew members will be checked for symptoms and will be forbidden from having any contact with the local population.