A specialist British Army team and medical personnel have been parachuted on to the remote British overseas territory of Tristan da Cunha with medical aid and equipment following a hantavirus case
A specialist Army unit and medical staff have been parachuted onto the British overseas territory of Tristan da Cunha carrying medical supplies and equipment, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has announced.
The UK Health Security Agency revealed on Friday that a British citizen had disembarked from the cruise vessel MV Hondius onto the island, where they reside, with a suspected hantavirus infection. Six paratroopers, an RAF consultant and Army medic from 16 Air Assault Brigade were dropped in, while oxygen supplies and medical equipment were air-dropped onto the isolated island, which is typically only reachable by sea.
The RAF A400M transport plane departed from RAF Brize Norton bound for Ascension Island, backed by an RAF Voyager, before continuing to Tristan da Cunha. The MoD confirmed this marked the first occasion medical personnel had been parachuted in to deliver humanitarian assistance.
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper stated that protecting “all members of the British family” remains the utmost priority.
She added: “We will continue to work closely with international authorities and the Tristan da Cunha administration, keeping those affected informed and ensuring the right support is in place in the UK and across the Overseas Territories.”
The MV Hondius docked in Tenerife on Sunday morning, with British passengers set to be flown home to quarantine at the hospital previously used as the UK’s primary Covid isolation facility, as the UKHSA maintained the threat to the public “remains very low”. UKHSA revealed passengers will be transported to an isolation facility at Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral, Merseyside, following their repatriation to the UK aboard a chartered aircraft.
Representatives from the UKHSA and Foreign Office were set to meet the MV Hondius upon its arrival in Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands, with British nationals on board undergoing hantavirus testing before disembarking.
Should individuals test negative and show no symptoms, they will be taken directly to a chartered repatriation aircraft equipped with medical staff and containing protective equipment including face masks.
Upon arrival back in the UK, the passengers will be accommodated in a residential block at the Arrowe Park site, separated from the hospital’s public zones, to undergo clinical evaluations and testing as a precautionary step.
The hospital previously accommodated British citizens returning from Wuhan, China, in January 2020 during the onset of the Covid pandemic.
The World Health Organisation confirmed on Saturday that no symptomatic passengers remained aboard the vessel.
The UN health body reported there had been six confirmed hantavirus cases connected to MV Hondius, with four patients currently receiving hospital treatment.
It noted that a total of eight cases, including three fatalities, had been documented – with one previously suspected case being reclassified following a negative hantavirus test.
The UKHSA confirmed three British nationals are amongst the eight cases – two involving confirmed hantavirus and another being suspected. The two confirmed British cases are currently hospitalised in South Africa and the Netherlands, while the third Briton in Tristan da Cunha is receiving support from health services on the isolated South Atlantic island.
Professor Robin May, chief scientific officer at UKHSA, stated: “We continue to work at pace with our international partners to ensure the safe repatriation of British nationals from the MV Hondius.
“The safety and wellbeing of those on board remains our number one priority. Established infection control measures will be in place at every step of the journey, and passengers will receive full support throughout, including during their period of isolation.”
Janelle Holmes, the chief executive of Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, informed staff in a letter: “We have been asked by NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) to house the guests, recognising how quickly and positively we responded to and supported the repatriation of British nationals from Wuhan and the Diamond Princess prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We will be welcoming the guests on Sunday 10 May 2026 and they will all be screened for symptoms before they arrive on site; nobody showing any symptoms will be transferred here. If anyone becomes unwell after arrival, they will be transferred quickly to another facility.”
Emergency services in the north west of England anticipate the passengers will be kept in a “managed setting” for up to 72 hours. Public health experts will then evaluate whether they can self-isolate at home or another appropriate location, depending on their living circumstances.
Brits returning to the UK will be required to self-isolate for 45 days and will be prohibited from using public transport to reach their homes.
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