Six passengers evacuated from the MS Hondius after a hantavirus outbreak on board have been released from quarantine in Western Australia after 42 days.
The group, made up of five Australians and one New Zealander, had been held at RAAF Base Pearce near Perth after being evacuated from the cruise ship in the Canary Islands in May. The ship had been exposed to a hantavirus outbreak that killed three people and infected 11 others.
Health Minister Mark Butler had described Australia’s response as the “strongest” in the world, with the six transferred to the quarantine facility at Bullsbrook for 42 days. Throughout that period, all six repeatedly tested negative for the virus.
On Tuesday, they were released from the Bullsbrook site and seen departing in a mini-van before being escorted to Perth Airport to continue travelling home.
Speaking at Perth Airport, passenger Peter Marshall said they were “very, very well looked after by the staff”.
“We have been incredibly grateful for the commonwealth government and the staff who looked after us,” he told The West Australian.
Another passenger said the facility was “pretty good actually”.
The passenger said they were tested for the deadly virus “all the time”, but were still able to get outside for walks and fresh air.
They also praised the meals provided during quarantine.
“We had good food, quite a variety, some good pizzas,” they said.
A Department of Health, Disability and Ageing spokesman told NewsWire that all six passengers “remain well” and returned negative results in their final tests last week.
“Consistent with expert advice from the Australian Health Protection Committee, no further isolation, quarantine or public health follow-up is required after passengers leave the facility,” they said.
“They are considered free of hantavirus and pose no risk of onward transmission.”
Australia’s chief medical officer Michael Kidd gave the final clearance at about 2am on Tuesday.
“The Australian government is supporting Australian passengers to return to their home states today by assisting with transport to the airport, providing support at the airport as needed, and arranging flights,” the spokesperson said.
The Bullsbrook quarantine centre, north of Perth, was built at the end of the Covid pandemic and is staffed by health professionals from the Darwin National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre.
On May 15, Mr Butler said: “(The six passengers are) going to be put into the strongest quarantine arrangements you’ll find anywhere in the world,”
“We’re going to have at least a minimum quarantine period of three weeks, staffed by experts that have been deployed from Darwin there, because I’m determined to make sure there is zero risk of this virus getting out into our community.”
