David Hernández, an intensive care nurse at a Tenerife hospital, said he was gripped by fear and anxiety when he heard that the virus-stricken MV Hondius would dock on the island. “I thought, ‘Why us?’ Everyone will be scared by the uncertainty of the situation. This is bringing back flashbacks of the Covid-19 pandemic,” the 29-year-old told The Independent.
Three passengers have died and at least four are sick on the ship in what health officials say is an outbreak of hantavirus, which usually spreads by inhaling contaminated rodent droppings. The World Health Organisation believes rare human-to-human transmission may have taken place aboard the vessel. After the outbreak, Cape Verde refused to let passengers disembark, but the Spanish government announced the ship could dock in Tenerife in three days, sparking a furious backlash.
On Wednesday, Canary Islands leader Fernando Clavijo sought to block the ship, saying authorities could not guarantee public safety. Madrid said it had agreed to admit the ship following instructions from the WHO. Hernández said the news evoked memories of 2020, when Tenerife became a focal point for Covid-19. “The population on the island has grown by about a million since the pandemic and we have the same 24 beds in the intensive care unit. I don’t think we can cope,” he said.
Brian Harrison, a British businessman who has lived in Tenerife for more than 40 years, said there was a feeling of uncertainty among islanders. “This is a virus, so there might be a quarantine. Will people be allowed to move around freely? The origin of the virus is from rodents. Obviously, you can control points where humans can move but you cannot control rodents. So, it is a very grey area.”
The Canary Islands depends on tourism, and 6.5 million Britons visited last year. Roberto Gómez, a businessman in the health industry, said: “My brother works in tourism as does my brother-in-law. This image of a cruise ship with passengers who have suffered and, in some cases, died from this virus, could be damaging.” The spat between the Canary Islands and Madrid has reignited debates over the balance of power. Francesca Borges, a retired teacher, said residents felt the islands were being used by the central government to deal with an unwelcome problem. “There is a history of the Canary Islands having to take responsibility for a European problem,” she said.
