Nicosia, Cyprus. Cyprus on Thursday activated the Council of the European Union’s integrated political crisis response mechanism to support information sharing on hantavirus as global case numbers rise.
Activation and purpose
The Council of the European Union said the activation of the arrangements will facilitate the exchange of information among member states and EU institutions.
“It will serve as a platform bringing together all relevant information and all ongoing actions, with a view to strengthening situational awareness and supporting preparedness,” it added.
Risk assessment in Europe
The council said the European centre for disease prevention and control classifies the risk for the general population in Europe as very low, citing the implementation of appropriate infection prevention and control measures and noting that hantaviruses are not easily spread between people.
Other uses of the mechanism
The EU’s integrated political crisis response mechanism is currently active in relation to global developments including the situation in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
It has been activated in the past in response to the 2023 earthquakes in Turkey and the Covid-19 pandemic.
MV Hondius outbreak and repatriations
The current spate of hantavirus cases is linked to an outbreak on the cruise ship MV Hondius.
Passengers disembarked at the weekend and began to be repatriated to their countries of origin, with 147 passengers from 23 countries having been aboard the ship.
Cyprus readiness and a Greek passenger transfer
Earlier this week, Cyprus’ health ministry said it is fully prepared for hantavirus, both in terms of laboratory support and in terms of managing potential cases.
One passenger, a Greek national, was flown from Tenerife, where the ship had docked, to the Dutch city of Eindhoven alongside 25 fellow passengers on an evacuation flight on Sunday evening.
From there, the passenger was flown to Greece’s Elefsina airbase aboard a Greek air force jet and transferred to the Attikon university hospital on the outskirts of Athens, where they will remain in quarantine for 45 days in a negative pressure isolation chamber.
What measures do you think EU member states should prioritise to strengthen preparedness for hantavirus?