> "I will be there myself," Tedros said in a letter addressed to the people of the Canary Islands, where the ship will anchor off the coast of its largest island, Tenerife. "I intend to travel to Tenerife to observe this operation firsthand, to stand alongside the health workers, port staff, and officials who are making it happen, and to personally pay my respects to an island that has responded to a difficult situation with grace, solidarity, and compassion. Your humanity deserves to be witnessed, not just acknowledged from a distance."
152
Sterling_____ArcherMay 10, 2026
+16
Respect. ✊
16
[deleted]May 9, 2026
+70
[removed]
70
[deleted]May 9, 2026
+9
[removed]
9
[deleted]May 9, 2026
-8
[removed]
-8
[deleted]May 9, 2026
+4
[removed]
4
Forest_OrcMay 9, 2026
+174
The Irony is that higher up are often rusty in front line management (if they had any experience in that kind of crisis management beforehand) but politically speaking, saying that they put their best team on it would be a PR suicide
174
noir_lordMay 9, 2026
+97
Yeah but when a higher up says they are going to oversee something that usually just means on site to answer questions kicked up the chain more quickly and it sure does unblock getting resources moving when the dude everyone answers to is stood there nodding.
I imagine there are a lot of those in a fast moving situation involving multiple nationalities and the WHO.
So probably a good thing.
97
succsforeverMay 9, 2026
+27
"oversee" is the term here, what is the big problem? He's not going to the front line and doing it himself
27
SillyGoatGruffMay 9, 2026
+31
The director will be chucking people overboard by hand lol
31
No_Conversation_9325May 9, 2026
-7
Actually he is
-7
DelightfulWaffleMay 9, 2026
+60
Send RFK to evacuate each passenger personally, without a hazmat suit.
60
krozarEQMay 9, 2026
+11
Insert video into his TikTok feed saying that Hantavirus cures autism and offer up a bear cub roadkill. He'll be there tomorrow. Just not sure if they want him there.
11
Bitter_Nail8577May 10, 2026
+2
Jokes on you, RFK doesn't believe in hazmat suit's effectiveness anyway... Or in vaccines...
2
Remote_Literature_23May 9, 2026
+67
So, why can't they be quarantined at sea (or some sort of quarantine village)? Why do they need to return home to all corners of the world?
67
DullcorgisMay 9, 2026
+34
Part of quarantine is isolating the individuals from each other because if they are all crammed together on a ship then the infection will spread among them and keep resetting the quarantine clock.
34
rollo_readMay 9, 2026
+47
If only they happened to be on a thing that could facilitate such travel.
47
EntrinityMay 9, 2026
-21
Who’s going to pay to keep that ship running? It’s probably much cheaper this way.
-21
furyextralargeMay 9, 2026
+24
oh thank god
24
Strong-Finish5346May 10, 2026
+9
I’m pretty sure that the planet has the collective resources to keep a single plague ship running for a few months.
9
aformofwealthyMay 10, 2026
+6
Happy for the company to eat the costs on this one, jfc
6
rollo_readMay 10, 2026
+1
The company who specialise on keeping boats floating on water and not tethered to a dock, as per their original pre virus plan to keep sailing.
1
SafeImpressive4413May 9, 2026
+22
I’ve seen this question asked to an expert this afternoon, it’s basically because they don’t know if the source of the virus is a person or it’s inside the boat (a rat for example)
So since they don’t know exactly, the best option is to just evacuate the whole boat and quarantine them at hospitals that have isolation rooms prepared, in the case of Spain for Spanish nationals it’s the Gomez Ulla hospital in Madrid, or in the case of the US for Americans it’s the Nebraska medicine hospital in Omaha
22
Choice_Past7399May 10, 2026
+5
But why not evacuate the boat to another boat. Large hospital boats exist.
5
BatProfessional7316May 10, 2026
+3
And very very expensive
3
Choice_Past7399May 10, 2026
+2
C**** compared to a pandemic
2
BatProfessional7316May 10, 2026
+3
Yeah, but when did the government care about that? One has to volunteer to pay for it
3
Remote_Literature_23May 10, 2026
+1
That's fair enough and makes sense, thank you! As long as they actually quarantine, apparently the US won't do it...
1
No_Conversation_9325May 9, 2026
+9
No, ICU needed in case if they get sick
9
[deleted]May 9, 2026
[deleted]
0
No_Conversation_9325May 9, 2026
+4
Precisely, she is not on the ship, so would asymptomatic people be held in the middle on the sea, if they'd have to be evacuated if they get unwell.
4
BadahBingBadahBoomMay 10, 2026
+2
There's currently only one Dutch person who is suspected or confirmed to be infected with hantavirus in the Netherlands and that is a 41-year-old Dutch crew member of the ship. He has now been confirmed to have the virus.
He is being treated at Radboud University Medical Centre (Radboudumc) in Nijmegen and is isolated ofc but not in the ICU.
(The other individual being treated in the Netherlands is the British tour guide. Two contacts of the Dutch woman on her second flight have both tested negative for hantavirus and are only suffering mild respiratory symptoms - their hospitalisation was a precaution based on their exposure *not* severity of illness.)
2
hungariannastyboyMay 9, 2026
+6
God, I wonder if the WHO might know more about this than f****** listnookors. I WONDER.
6
Remote_Literature_23May 9, 2026
+11
Do you know what a question mark means?
11
[deleted]May 9, 2026
+16
[removed]
16
Anxious_Pin_2755May 9, 2026
+20
He said f*** it I’ll do it myself
20
magicienne451May 9, 2026
-18
Not much other choice when all the staff who should be doing it got fired
-18
Tokey_TokeyMay 9, 2026
+18
I didn't know the WHO got gutted. source?
18
windingsandMay 9, 2026
+25
Pretty sure they’re mistaking WHO For the CDC
25
Tokey_TokeyMay 9, 2026
+10
I was aware 🤣
10
EconomicRegret2May 9, 2026
+5
It's been all over the news. The US left the WHO, which meant it lost about 15% of its funding (based on US contribution in 2022-2023), + CDC data and cooperation + US personnel and expertise. That loss also meant the WHO had to fire about 22% of its people.
[source](https://www.kff.org/global-health-policy/the-u-s-government-and-the-world-health-organization/)
5
Tokey_TokeyMay 9, 2026
+4
Yeah, that doesn't quite support to comment I was replying to. Who basically is faying without the US, it's ineffective.
Perhaps he is overseeing this personally to repair WHOs reputation due to COVID backlash
4
EconomicRegret2May 9, 2026
+4
He's obviously hyperboling and catastrophizing... The point being WHO lost too much of its funding, personnel, data and expertise.
4
krozarEQMay 9, 2026
+5
Not sure which would be worse for them: Losing 15% of funding or having one of their seats answering to RFK Jr.
5
WhoLetTheSinkInMay 9, 2026
+17
The same Dr Tedros who said travel bans to China weren’t necessary during the early days of Covid?
17
Choice_Past7399May 10, 2026
+15
Yup.
"no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade"
"'restrictions may interrupt needed aid and technical support, may disrupt businesses and may have negative effects' on the economies of those countries affected."
[https://www.nation.sc/articles/3309/comment-of-who-director-general-tedros-adhanom-ghebreyesus-on-the-novel-coronavirus-outbreak-which-has-become-a-public-health-emergency-of-international-concern-pheic-who-against-imposing-travel-or-trade-bans-on-china](https://www.nation.sc/articles/3309/comment-of-who-director-general-tedros-adhanom-ghebreyesus-on-the-novel-coronavirus-outbreak-which-has-become-a-public-health-emergency-of-international-concern-pheic-who-against-imposing-travel-or-trade-bans-on-china)
Same guy who said "no global health emergency" 3 weeks in.
[https://www.science.org/content/article/who-says-no-need-yet-declare-spread-novel-virus-international-emergency](https://www.science.org/content/article/who-says-no-need-yet-declare-spread-novel-virus-international-emergency)
Same guy who said "not a pandemic. Just multiple epidemics"
15
WhoLetTheSinkInMay 10, 2026
+6
Oh great, I have my utmost faith in the handling of this then.
6
AlienhaslandedMay 9, 2026
+4
All I know is a bunch of legit scientists said that it's not going to be like COVID. I hope they're right.
4
removable_diskMay 9, 2026
+12
A little late for all the people who already left and are walking around at the supermarket already.
12
JuggletrainMay 9, 2026
+26
I just know they'll f*** up the easiest quarantine ever. They're on a ship and can't get off, pull up one of those hospital ships. Move the sick there, quarantine the rest. Move them over if they start to show signs.
F****** easy. They even have indoor tracks and ahit they could let people exercise on.
I bet they just release them into the country though, nothing will bury files like a new plague.
26
TyrialFrostMay 10, 2026
+6
They have already let out so many people since the first death.
6
No_Conversation_9325May 9, 2026
+5
Which hospital ships?
5
JuggletrainMay 9, 2026
+1
Mercy class hospital ships run by the navy
1
No_Conversation_9325May 9, 2026
+6
Whose navy? Why didn’t they send them yet?
6
JuggletrainMay 9, 2026
+3
United States, and some jackass withdrew from WHO and reduced the scope of the Mercy class ship's humanitarian aid missions. There is one a few days away with no current mission.
3
No_Conversation_9325May 9, 2026
-5
They (US ones) are in dry dock for maintenance anyway. Who else?
-5
JuggletrainMay 9, 2026
+7
The comfort finished maintenance last month
7
No_Conversation_9325May 9, 2026
-6
Ok, so why isn't US sending it? I mean, Spain is acting according to WHO and no other country within the ship\\s range volunteered to take one for the team.
-6
JuggletrainMay 9, 2026
+7
Read above for the why, that was one of the first questions you asked and was addressed earlier.
Spain also runs two hospital ships, they have not volunteered them.
7
No_Conversation_9325May 9, 2026
-3
They don't have to. They have been asked to serve as an evacuation hub and that's what they are doing. Spain has zero desire to risk its population in any way, it got hit quite brutally during COVID.
-3
Only--EastMay 9, 2026
+5
WHO isn't taking this situation lightly, but also this doesn't have the potential to become a plague. I'm sure the professionals know what they're doing.
5
ChiAnndegoMay 10, 2026
+2
I dunno, bubonic plague is transmitted similarly (close contact + animal vector + respiratory) and Madagascar had a heck of a time getting rid of the pneumonic version. This could be a slow burn in certain areas. Also concerning is the incubation and prodrome period is very long. Things I've read seem to think that transmission is highest in the early febrile period too.
Ebola, another comparable disease, spreads fast, but is limited by how fast and disabling symptoms are, and the fact that the highest risk of transmitting is basically when major symptoms are raging.
2
Only--EastMay 11, 2026
+1
They also both spread really well in poor areas with low income.
People during the Black Plague literally poured their shit in the road and drank piss as a panacea. Pneumonic plague was rare even back in those days and it killed in hours.
1
ChiAnndegoMay 11, 2026
+1
Unfortunately, these days, there are areas of the US that are comparable to the sanitation of middle ages Europe. Homeless encampments, prisons (& migrant ICE camps), rural areas. It's unreal how many people in america still lack adequate indoor plumbing in some rural areas and how many in cities lack working facilities due to inadequate rental housing.
1
Strong-Finish5346May 10, 2026
+2
Listnookors said the same thing about the Chinese Wuhan flu when it was ravaging Wuhan.
2
ThenedslittlegirlMay 10, 2026
+8
It depends where you looked on Listnook. There was a high level of concern and a dedicated Sub the minute they locked down Wuhan. The big difference is that Covid-19 was novel and the WHO was very conservative with the information they were giving because we didn’t fully understand how it transmitted.
The Andes variant of hantavirus has been known for around 30 years and we know a lot more about it
8
SmokeVisual4953May 10, 2026
+1
Somehow I am not so sure about that
1
Only--EastMay 10, 2026
+3
This virus literally doesn't have the means for it. Widespread outbreak if not contained? Sure. Pandemic? Absolutely not
3
SmokeVisual4953May 10, 2026
+2
If you're right I'm glad, but I in general am wary of being too self assured on matters such as these
2
JuggletrainMay 9, 2026
-6
Have you adjusted your estimates for Americans and RFK Jr being added into the mix?
-6
Only--EastMay 9, 2026
+5
WHO doesn't answer to RFK Jr
5
InformedTriangleMay 9, 2026
+3
There have been minor andes hantavirus outbreaks happening on and off in Argentina for 31 years, and other South American areas for 20+. and it's never spread meaningfully or caused significant deaths. Your "new plague" hysteria is just silly and ridiculous.
3
Golden_Hour1May 9, 2026
-5
Someone should be sued if this goes south
-5
wynveenMay 10, 2026
+2
They’ll manage to bungle it somehow.
2
Living-Camera8228May 11, 2026
+2
Please help me out here, cause im really confused right now. Why is this dude still in charge of the WHO, given the way he managed the covid??
2
organicogrrMay 11, 2026
+1
Because the WHO is corrupt as f***
1
Popular-Drummer-7989May 11, 2026
+1
I think RFK Jr should help them too
1
Sure-Whereas3562May 12, 2026
+1
It's not the evacuation that's the problem, it's the sending of the evacuated folks to every corner of the world
1
Timmy_2_RaaangzMay 9, 2026
-8
Isn’t it a tad late for that seeing as infected people have already boarded planes to return home ~~and infected others in the process~~?
-8
nicuramarMay 9, 2026
+45
> and infected others in the process?
There is no evidence of that.
45
noir_lordMay 9, 2026
+35
> Professor, without knowing precisely what the danger is, would you say it's time for our viewers to crack each other's heads open and feast on the goo inside?
I understand why in a post-covid world people are worried but the amount of conjecture and dooming is depressing.
35
KanotariMay 9, 2026
+13
That's exactly it. People are just scared after COVID. Hantavirus isn't nearly as transmissible, and the WHO director's presence is just a safety blankie. If it helps people sleep at night, so be it.
13
noir_lordMay 9, 2026
+7
It's not even a bad thing even if it is just an optics thing, it's still testing out how WHO works with multiple national governments in the real world post covid and lets them shake out a bunch of issues they'll inevitably run into.
7
weirdhoney216May 9, 2026
+11
I honestly think some people get off on being a doomer. They enjoy it. It’s really weird
11
noir_lordMay 9, 2026
+4
I think a lot of it is that the people who lean into it tend to post more actively and that results in a feedback loop with others.
That and the conspiracy theories after covid, I suspect the people who where virulently against vaccines for that reason are a near perfect circle as a venn diagram of the people dooming about this.
4
blueSGLMay 9, 2026
+4
> I suspect the people who where virulently against vaccines for that reason are a near perfect circle as a venn diagram of the people dooming about this.
How does that make sense. The people that were against vaccines thought covid was a hoax.
4
noir_lordMay 9, 2026
+2
Not entirely, quite a few of them thought the hoax was to make people take the vaccine that would do..well everything from mind control to allow the One World to hunt them down.
Those folks didn't so much go down the Rabbit hole as take a running leap at it.
I mean there are people chopping down 5G masts *still*.
2
No_Conversation_9325May 9, 2026
+1
Wait, what? The people who were against vaccines had COVID parties, believing the faster we all get it the faster it's over
1
canijustbelancelotMay 9, 2026
+3
The rest of the circle is probably just those of us with cOCD freaking out and not being reeled back in.
3
weirdhoney216May 9, 2026
+3
I totally sympathise with that issue. I try to leave calming comments on things about how this isn’t covid but usually get shouted down by people who don’t look into things and just read fear bait headlines (I’m not talking about people with your issue)
3
canijustbelancelotMay 9, 2026
+3
Tbh I think a lot of us with this problem know we shouldn’t be consuming the news about this, but we can’t stop. I’m always glad to see a calming comment.
3
weirdhoney216May 9, 2026
+1
That’s definitely part of it
1
Timmy_2_RaaangzMay 9, 2026
+4
You are correct. I hadn’t realized the flight attendant had tested negative as well as one other passenger from that flight. Seems they are waiting on the results of testing from a third person still.
4
xXConfuocoXxMay 9, 2026
-2
“No evidence” isn’t entirely accurate, there have been multiple people on the flight that have came down with symptoms and are being monitored, one of which has tested negative.
Correlative evidence is still enough to say something more like “there haven’t been any confirmed infections outside of those exposed on the ship”
-2
dzolnaMay 9, 2026
-1
Yet
-1
No_Conversation_9325May 9, 2026
+2
That's up to the countries those people are citizens of
2
UnexpectedHarbingerMay 9, 2026
> and *potentially allowing them to* infect others in the process?
Yes. Andes variant of hantavirus appears contagious upon symptom onset and likely a little before, so screening symptoms won't necessarily prevent infection. Quarantine would prevent further transmission, and its etymology derives from days when ships would quarantine in harbor for 40 days to prevent spread of infectious disease outbreaks. The idea of the quarantine literally developed with ships, and the WHO won't do it here, on a ship.
0
Golden_Hour1May 9, 2026
How about we leave them there till they've passed the incubation period?
0
supercali45May 9, 2026
-2
Didn’t the US leave the WHO?
-2
Only--EastMay 9, 2026
+15
What does that have to do with this?
15
topheavyhookjawsMay 9, 2026
+4
?? What's your point mate
4
[deleted]May 9, 2026
[deleted]
0
noir_lordMay 9, 2026
Would you feel the same if you or a family member was on board?
Or would you want medical experts and virologists to assess the known facts and make a decision based on that.
0
DeciduousLesbianMay 9, 2026
+6
> Would you feel the same if you or a family member was on board?
Yes, because I’m not selfish enough to put me and my family above the entire world’s population.
6
noir_lordMay 9, 2026
+2
Then you are very noble though a cynic would point out that it's very easy to say yes while not sat on the ship.
But I'm sure you are in fact that noble.
2
DeciduousLesbianMay 9, 2026
+3
I feel like calling it noble is overselling it.
It’s more just not being selfish.
3
noir_lordMay 9, 2026
+4
Choosing to stay on a ship with minimum access to medical care after experts have assessed the risk and said it is acceptable to be removed to somewhere else which increases your chances of dying for no appreciable benefit.
That's noble, stupid but noble.
Oh I just looked at your comment history, it's just stupid isn't it.
4
DeciduousLesbianMay 9, 2026
“Sir, you have to choose. Your wife and kids, or the *entire* population of the world?”
me: “The entire world population..?”
*crowd erupts in cheer*
“Wow! So noble! I really didn’t think you would be so altruistic!”
me: “Yeah.”
0
noir_lordMay 9, 2026
+2
Your comment history reads like an incel and/or a cry for help but in either case you are clearly an idiot.
I'm done arguing with an idiot.
2
True-Strength-697May 9, 2026
-1
You’ve still got time to delete this.
-1
thousandtonguebeastMay 9, 2026
-5
I can hear Bro Jogan getting more deranged by the second.
-5
mystic_cheeseMay 9, 2026
-3
Season 2, Episode 1
-3
stonertearMay 10, 2026
Would've been good if he did this with COVID 6 years ago instead of ignoring it.
115 Comments