A crew draped in white protective gear moved through the MV Hondius on Monday as it docked in the Port of Rotterdam. The vessel, which has become a floating tomb for three passengers, is undergoing a deep cleaning process on the advice of local health authorities. According to Yvonne van Duijnhoven, the director of public health in Rotterdam, the disinfection of the ship is a necessary step before it can return to its home port in Vlissingen. The ship arrived in the Netherlands eight days ago following a transatlantic voyage that descended into a biological nightmare.

In Madrid, a Spanish national who was evacuated from the ship has tested positive for hantavirus. According to Spain’s Ministry of Health, the patient was moved to a high-level isolation unit after experiencing a low-grade fever and respiratory symptoms. This is the second Spanish passenger to contract the lethal Andes strain of the virus. Health authorities across multiple countries are currently racing to trace 140 passengers and crew who disembarked in the Canary Islands on May 10. The incubation period for the virus can last up to six weeks, leaving families in a state of agonizing uncertainty.

Despite the deaths and the ongoing quarantine of seventeen American citizens, the ship’s operator, Oceanwide Expeditions, plans to return to sea shortly. The company has canceled departures scheduled for May 29 and June 5 but intends to welcome a fresh batch of passengers by mid-June. The outbreak reportedly began after an elderly Dutch couple contracted the virus in Argentina and brought it aboard. The incident highlights the fragility of the global travel industry, where luxury and leisure can be instantly upended by the silent arrival of a rare and lethal pathogen.