As reported widely in the media, British nationals from the MV Hondius who were due to return to the UK have now arrived back safely and are being monitored at Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral as a precautionary measure.

The risk to the public remains very low. 

This is the latest statement from the organisations involved in the operation: 

Joint Statement from NHS England North West, NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICB, Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Merseyside Police, North West Ambulance Service, and Wirral Council 

We are pleased to confirm that 22 passengers on board MV Hondius have arrived safely at Arrowe Park Hospital, where they will be accommodated during a precautionary period of isolation in line with advice from the UK Health Security Agency. 

We want to warmly welcome our guests to Wirral. They have had a long journey home, and we are committed to ensuring they are comfortable, well cared for and properly supported throughout their stay with us. We hope they will feel at home here and know that everything possible is being done for them. 

We want to reassure the public, and particularly those who live and work in Wirral, that the risk to the general public remains very low. The UK Health Security Agency has confirmed this clearly. The guests arriving at Arrowe Park are not displaying any symptoms of hantavirus and are isolating here purely as a precaution. This is a planned, controlled and carefully managed arrangement. Hantavirus is not spread through everyday social contact and there is no reason for local residents to be concerned. 

The hospital is operating completely normally. All planned services are continuing as usual and patients, visitors and staff should continue to come to the hospital with complete confidence. Our guests are accommodated separately from all patient-facing areas and robust infection control measures are in place at every stage. 

We would like to pay tribute to the extraordinary efforts of staff and partners across the NHS, emergency services and local government who have worked with remarkable dedication and professionalism to prepare for this moment. Getting this site ready at pace, while maintaining the full range of services a busy working hospital provides, has been a genuinely herculean effort. The speed, commitment and good spirit with which everyone has come together has been something to be proud of. 

We are confident that we now have safe, well-tested and carefully considered processes in place to support our guests throughout their stay, and we will continue to work closely with the UK Health Security Agency and all partner organisations as the situation develops. 

The latest updates on the situation can be found here: UKHSA update on the hantavirus cruise ship outbreak – GOV.UK 

And the UKHSA has produced the following Frequently Asked Questions: What is hantavirus? How is it transmitted and what are the symptoms? – UK Health Security Agency