Among the six individuals who have arrived at a secluded quarantine center in Australia today is a British national. This group had been aboard a cruise ship affected by hantavirus.
The Australian government facilitated a flight from the Netherlands on Thursday morning to evacuate these six passengers. The passengers included four Australians, a British citizen, and a New Zealander, all of whom were disembarked from the MV Hondius cruise ship.
According to Health Minister Mark Butler, who addressed the media in Canberra, the passengers are in “good health,” showing no symptoms, and have recently tested negative for the virus. Despite this, they will remain under quarantine for a minimum of three weeks.
During the flight to a military base in Perth, Western Australia, the passengers were required to wear extensive personal protective equipment (PPE).
Once in Perth, the group was transported to the Bullsbrook Centre for National Resilience. This facility, which can accommodate up to 500 individuals, will be their home for the duration of the quarantine period.
“This represents one of the most stringent quarantine measures globally in response to the hantavirus outbreak,” Butler stated.
‘They will be subject to testing when they arrive in Australia, and they will be in full PPE during the duration of the flight, so there is no risk of transmission.’
He did not provide further details about the passengers or say where the plane would refuel – a question that had reportedly complicated flight arrangements.
A Briton is among the six people who have today arrived at a remote quarantine facility in Australia after they all sailed on a hantavirus-affected cruise
A van carrying Australian travellers who spent time on the Hantavirus-infected cruise ship MV Hondius arrives at the Centre for National Resilience in Perth, Australia, May 15 2026
The six passengers were in ‘good health’, showed no symptoms, and recently tested negative for the virus
The government has yet to determine how to handle the passengers’ isolation after the initial three-week quarantine, given the virus’ potential incubation period of 42 days, the minister said.
It comes after a British man quarantined in Milan over hantavirus fears, despite not having any symptoms, was taken from the bed and breakfast he was staying in – and will now have to remain locked up for a month.
The man, in his 60s, was stopped at the guesthouse where he was staying in the Pasteur area of Milan, along with a 50-year-old man who had joined him in Italy.
Officials in Milan said they had been alerted by the UK Ministry of Health and had traced the men to their B&B late on Tuesday night, and he and his companion were taken to the Sacco hospital by police.
Both have tested negative for the hantavirus, but the older man has been told to remain in Italy as he is deemed a ‘close contact’ of Dutch woman Mirijam Schilperood, who died in South Africa and was onboard MV Hondius.
Schilperood, who had been on the April 25 Airlink flight from St Helena to Johannesburg, was sitting in 13C, a subsequent positive hantavirus case sat in 14B, while the British passenger was in 15F.
The man had then flown on to Italy, where he had spent 17 days touring Rome, Florence, Venice and the Cinque Terre near Genoa.
Mrs Schilperood’s husband Leon also died on the ship, and the two are thought to have contracted the deadly rat-borne Andes virus strain while travelling in southern Argentina, where it is prevalent.
Guido Bertolaso, of the health department at Lombardy council in Milan, said: ‘Both men were identified at their B&B after details were provided by British authorities.
The group were taken to the Bullsbrook Centre for National Resilience, a 500-bed quarantine facility
They will be cut off from the world for at least three weeks
‘One is in his 60s and a resident of St Helena, while the other is younger, in his 50s.
‘Neither is showing symptoms of the virus, and both have tested negative, but the older man will remain in quarantine in Italy until June 6 to ensure he doesn’t develop the virus.
‘The younger man will be allowed to return home.
‘The alert was received from the UK authorities at 2.14pm local time on Tuesday, and the men were found just before 8pm when they returned to their B&B.
‘The test results were confirmed at 5am on Wednesday morning.
‘The older man will stay in the hospital or at another site, as he cannot quarantine in the B&B, as it is not adequate.
‘The younger man is not deemed a close contact, but he has been advised to carry on testing and keep an eye out for symptoms.’
The UK government notified Italian authorities about the British tourist, who had visited various countries, including Amsterdam, before arriving in Milan, where his travel plans came to an abrupt halt.
Because he had no private accommodation and was staying in a B&B, he will have to endure the whole of his quarantine in a single room in the Infectious Diseases ward of the hospital.
It comes as 10 Britons from South Atlantic islands linked to the cruise ship outbreak are set to be brought to the UK in case they develop the illness, officials have revealed.
The group, who are residents of the UK overseas territories of Saint Helena and Ascension Island, are being flown to Britain to complete their self-isolation.
The six evacuees included four Australians citizens, a Briton and a New Zealander
A flight carrying six evacuated MV Hondius cruise ship passengers left the Netherlands on Thursday morning
All those involved are British and are understood to include people who left the cruise ship in Saint Helena, plus medical staff who have been in contact with them.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said the total included four individuals in Saint Helena who were on the cruise ship and six close contacts on Ascension Island.
None are symptomatic, and their final destination in Britain is unknown, but the move was described as ‘precautionary to support communities in UK overseas territories’.
Once in Britain, they will get access to NHS infectious disease specialists should they become ill, and the UKHSA said it will ‘set out where they will isolate in due course’.
It comes as 20 British nationals from the MV Hondius, together with a German who is a UK resident, and a Japanese passenger, who have been isolating at Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral in Merseyside, prepare to leave the facility.
They were taken there on Sunday night after the ship docked in Tenerife for a three-day isolation and assessment period. They will isolate for another 42 days at home.
The UKHSA said of this group: ‘Public health and clinical specialists have assessed each passenger’s individual circumstances, and, where it is safe and possible, tailored support packages will be provided to enable people to isolate at home.
‘Health protection teams across the UK will continue to monitor and support everyone after they leave the facility, with daily contact throughout the isolation period to ensure they can isolate safely.’
The statement also said a ‘small number of individuals who have been isolating at home or elsewhere in England’ will also be assessed at the hospital.
