A luxury cruise ship that has been hit by an outbreak of the deadly hantavirus was preparing to travel from Cape Verde towards Europe on Wednesday after the Spanish government gave permission for it to dock in the Canary Islands.
The Spanish Health Ministry said it had been asked by the World Health Organisation and the European Union to take the MV Hondius "in accordance with international law and humanitarian principles".
It said it would also on Tuesday evening receive a medical flight carrying the ship's doctor, a Dutch national who it said was gravely ill, following a formal request from the Dutch government.
A Dutch couple and a German national have died since the outbreak manifested in early April, while a British national was evacuated from the ship and is in intensive care in South Africa, officials said.
Two crew members require urgent medical care, the Dutch-flagged MV Hondius ship's operator, Oceanwide Expeditions, said. Another person on board with a suspected case has only reported a mild fever.
Cape Verde was meant to be the ship's final destination, but the nation off West Africa has not allowed the vessel to put passengers ashore.
Once in the Canary Islands, at a port yet to be determined, the Spanish health ministry said crew and passengers would be examined, treated, and repatriated to their respective countries, in coordination with the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and the WHO.
All necessary safety measures would be taken, the health ministry said, with medical care and transportation in special facilities and vehicles to avoid contact with the local population and protect health workers.
"The World Health Organisation has explained that Cape Verde is unable to carry out this operation," the statement added. "The Canary Islands are the closest location with the necessary capabilities."
"Spain has a moral and legal obligation to assist these people, among whom are also several Spanish citizens."
The Canary Islands is one of Europe's main arrival points for migrants from West Africa, with tens of thousands of people arriving in rubber dinghies and rickety fishing boats each year.
The MV Hondius would moor either in Gran Canaria or Tenerife, which were three or four days of sailing away from Cape Verde, Oceanwide and the Spanish health ministry said.
Health authorities say about 150 people from 23 countries are on board the ship.
At a press conference that began shortly after 6 pm local time (1900 GMT), Cape Verde’s National Director of Health, Angela Gomes, said evacuations would happen "in the coming hours".
The Dutch foreign ministry said earlier on Tuesday it was preparing the medical evacuation of three people to the Netherlands from the ship.
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