Eindhoven, May 12 (IANS). The final two evacuation flights carrying passengers and crew aboard the MV Hondius landed at Eindhoven Air Base in the Netherlands on Tuesday.
According to the Dutch Foreign Ministry, the first flight sent by Australia was carrying six passengers. The second flight was operated on behalf of the Dutch government, carrying 22 crew members. These included a Dutch citizen and citizens of 21 other countries.
The first plane landed around 12:30 a.m. local time (2330 GMT on Monday). The second Dutch flight landed about 15 minutes later.
The Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment said Sunday that all passengers would undergo thorough medical examinations. Everyone’s samples will be taken at the airport for laboratory testing.
According to Xinhua news agency, the agency said that quarantine hotels have been arranged for such crew members and foreign passengers. As per rules, at present these people cannot return to their homes.
Meanwhile, Oceanwide Expeditions, the Dutch operator of the MV Hondius, said in a statement on Monday that the ship had departed from the Spanish island of Teneriffe and was headed towards Rotterdam in the Netherlands. The ship is expected to take about six days to complete the journey and is likely to reach it by this Sunday.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), hantaviruses are zoonotic viruses, which naturally infect rodents (mice, etc.) and sometimes spread to humans. Infection in humans can cause serious illness and sometimes death, although the type of illness varies by virus and geographic region.
In the Americas, this infection can cause Hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS), which rapidly affects the lungs and heart. In Europe and Asia, it causes hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS), which mainly affects the kidneys and blood vessels.
Although there is no specific treatment available for hantavirus diseases, early supportive medical care plays an important role in increasing the chances of survival. This includes close monitoring and management of respiratory, cardiac and renal complications. The main method of prevention is to reduce contact between people and infected rats.
Hantavirus is spread to humans through contact with contaminated urine, feces or saliva of infected rodents. In some cases, the bite of these creatures can also cause infection, although this is rare.
–IANS
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