'This is not another COVID' - WHO chief

The open letter, penned by Tedros himself in a rare break from official press briefings, aims to calm a community gripped by anxiety as the MV Hondius sails toward the industrial port of Granadilla with nearly 150 people on board. Three passengers have already died from the Andes strain of hantavirus, evoking deep-seated trauma from the 2020 pandemic.

“I know that when you hear the word ‘outbreak’ and watch a ship sail toward your shores, memories surface that none of us have fully put to rest. The pain of 2020 is still real,” Dr. Tedros wrote. “But I need you to hear me clearly: this is not another COVID. The current public health risk from hantavirus remains low.”

The WHO chief detailed a rigorous biosecurity operation designed explicitly to ensure residents never come into contact with the passengers. He stressed that no symptomatic patients remain on the vessel, and a WHO expert is already aboard. The disembarkation plan, coordinated with Spanish authorities, will see passengers ferried ashore in sealed vehicles through a completely cordoned-off corridor at the industrial dock, far from residential zones, before being repatriated directly to their home countries.

“You will not encounter them. Your families will not encounter them,” the letter states, directly appealing to the public’s fears of local transmission.

Tedros reframed the operation not as a public health threat, but as an act of international solidarity. He revealed that the request to Spain was made under the legally binding international health regulations, because Tenerife possessed the necessary medical infrastructure to uphold the "safety and dignity" of those grieving and frightened on board. He personally thanked Prime Minister Sánchez for honouring this "moral duty" to accept citizens from 23 different nations.

In a show of solidarity — or perhaps to personally vouch for the safety protocols — Dr. Tedros announced that he himself intends to travel to Tenerife to witness the operation. He plans to stand alongside the health workers, port staff, and officials facilitating the transfer, seeking to pay his respects to an island he believes is responding with "grace, solidarity, and compassion."

"Viruses do not care about politics, and they do not respect borders. The best immunity any of us has is solidarity," Tedros said, directly thanking the ship’s captain, Jan Dobrogowski, the crew, and the operating company.

Meantime, here in Jamaica the Ministry of Health & Wellness has assured the public that there is no hantavirus cases on the island. 

But the public has been urged to remain vigilant, as the virus is spread mainly through contact with infected rodents. Symptoms range from flu-like (fever, headaches, muscle aches) to severe (shortness of breath, nausea). While the global risk is low per the WHO, the Chief Medical Officer encourages proper sanitation and rodent control and advises anyone with symptoms, especially after exposure to rodents, to seek medical attention.