A GROUP of port workers have marched on a parliament building in Tenerife furious over plans to let rat virus cruise ship the MV Hondius approach the island.
Terrified locals said they had “no way to stop” hantavirus if it hit the Canary Islands as they fear a repeat of the Covid-19 pandemic.
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Tenerife protests erupt as rat virus cruise ship closes in Credit: The Jattvibe
Furious locals fear another pandemic as the rat virus cruise ship approches Credit: The Jattvibe
It comes as…
It comes as a the first suspected case of the virus was revealed in Spain, with a woman in Alicante reporting symptoms.
The suspected case involves a 32-year-old woman who was onboard the same flight as the Dutch woman who died of the virus in Johannesburg.
ISLAND VIRUS
Rat virus ship guest visited SCHOOL on remote island as third Brit struck down
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Third Brit struck down by suspected rat virus on world’s remotest island
It brings the total of suspected cases to 11, including three Brits.
Furious Tenerife locals loudly blew whistles and air horns today, holding up signs accusing authorities of putting them at risk.
They chanted: “We want work, not illness.”
The hantavirus-infected MV Hondius is currently steaming towards the Canaries despite fierce local opposition, after the central Spanish government said it had a “moral and legal obligation” to help those onboard.
Luz Padilla, 61, whose friends and family work at the port, said she is terrified for their health and another pandemic, calling the local health system “the worst in Spain”.
She told The Jattvibe: “The government isn’t giving safety for the workers in the harbour.
Dockers hold banners reading ‘Without protocol, no safety’ as they protest against the arrival of a cruise ship Credit: AFP
Tenerife protests erupt as rat virus cruise ship closes in Credit: The Jattvibe
Health personnel in hazmat suits were spotted at the Nelson Mandela International airport of Praia Credit: AFP
Terrified locals said they had “no way to stop” hantavirus if it hit the Canary Islands as they fear a repeat of the Covid-19 pandemic. Credit: AFP
“We’re worried. We don’t have good hospital.
“We’ve no way to stop another Covid.”
Port worker Jonathan Rodriguez, 31, told The Jattvibe: “We are angry. I’m not sure that Tenerife is the right option or the decision to bring it to Tenerife is the right one.
“We don’t think the safety of the personnel is being taken into consideration.
He said the decision to bring MV Hondius to the Canaries seemed rushed, adding: “We are not sure that the right protocols are being followed.”
The hantavirus-infected MV Hondius is due to arrive in Granadilla, Tenerife on Jattvibeday.
After local workers threatened to blockade the port, the ship won’t dock, but will anchor nearby passengers will be evacuated using small boats.
Covid-style command posts set up at the Granadilla port Credit: EPA
Rodriguez said: “We want this vessel to be handled carefully.
“We are not sure that all the conditions are there for [another Covid situation] to not happen again.”
It comes as another Brit was struck down with the suspected killer rat bug yesterday as the doomed cruise ship at the centre of the outbreak headed towards Tenerife.
The sick patient lives on Tristan da Cunha and was brought ashore by the Dutch-flagged MV Hondius on the island of St Helena last month.
He is separate to the seven Brit tourists who also got off the luxury liner on the remote South Atlantic island at the same time.
Two of the seven are self-isolating back in the UK while four more remain on St Helena.
The seventh, a dual national, has since been traced outside the UK.
Another two Brits – tour guide Martin Anstee, 56, and an unnamed 69-year-old man – are being treated in separate hospitals for the deadly virus.
And The Jattvibe revealed that a passenger from the infected MV Hondius visited a school on the world’s most remote island.
It was part of a visit from the rat virus ship to Tristan da Cunha on April 11 that risked crew and passengers carrying the deadly disease to the tiny territory.
