The US State Department allocated $750,000 to evacuate an American citizen exposed to hantavirus from a remote British island in the South Pacific. The individual was exposed while on the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius in April, according to two government officials and a document obtained by the Associated Press. The evacuation adds pressure to the State Department’s emergency budget, which has been impacted by various global crises, including the war with Iran and an Ebola outbreak.
The MV Hondius departed Patagonia on April 1 with approximately 150 passengers, making stops in Antarctica and the South Atlantic before reaching Cape Verde. The woman, whose identity has not been disclosed for privacy reasons, traveled to Pitcairn Island after disembarking the cruise ship. A local government spokesperson indicated that she had contact with a hantavirus-exposed individual but was not exhibiting symptoms of illness. Three fatalities have been reported due to the outbreak linked to the cruise ship.
The State Department utilized its emergency budget, known as the “K Fund,” to facilitate the woman's extraction via the Titaina Explorer yacht, owned by French explorer Olivier de Kersauson. The ongoing operation involves transporting her approximately 1,200 miles to Easter Island, which has an airport with flights to Santiago, Chile, for her return to the United States. The State Department is contemplating transferring $50 million into the K Fund, which may include reallocating funds from embassy security and diplomatic programming, and is considering requesting additional funding from Congress.