Spain: MV Hondius captain honors victims of Antarctic ordeal following deadly viral outbreak.

RESTRICTION: USERS MUST CREDIT “OCEANWIDE EXPEDITIONS” HANDOUT —EDITORIAL USE ONLY— SHOTLIST UNKNOWN LOCATION (RELEASED MAY 11, 2026) (OCEANWIDE EXPEDITIONS - RESTRICTED) 1. (SOUNDBITE) (English) CRUISE SHIP MV HONDIUS CAPTIAN JAN DOBROGOWSKI, SAYING: “Dear guests, dear crew, dear family members back at home and everybody following this situation. My name is Jan Dobrogowski and I'm the captain of the Bola Expedition vessel Hondius. I've decided to take this time to thank every single guest and crew member on board here as well as our colleagues back home. The past few weeks have been extremely challenging to resolve as I'm sure you know what touched me the most, what moved me the most was your patience, your discipline and also kindness, kindness that you show to each other throughout. I see people depend on each other. There is no readily available rescue services standing by to come to your help and emergency so perseverance is sort of an expected quality perhaps but I've witnessed way more this time around. I've witnessed your caring, your unity and quiet strength amongst everybody on board guests and crew like and I must commend my crew for the courage and the selfless resolve that they showed timing again in the most difficult moments. I could not imagine sailing through these circumstances with a better group of people guests and crew like. Most importantly our thoughts are with the ones that no longer with us and whatever I say will not ease this loss but I'd like you to know that with us every day in our hearts and our thoughts. In a situation like this every image and every word can be taken out of context. This can be very painful to the people on board especially already dealing with grief, worry and perhaps uncertainty. As a captain of Hondius my job is to read my crew, take care of my guests and see the ship safely to board and our responsibility does not end there, does not end with our arrival in the canaries. So we've all been a part of this voyage and I wish nothing more to everybody guests and crew like to be able to go home safely and in good health. On behalf of Oceanwide Expeditions my crew myself I ask for privacy and respect to our guests and their families and our crew members in this difficult time. We've saved for this together across the sea now we hope to see everybody safely at home. Thank you very much.“ SCRIPT: Captain Jan Dobrogowski of the expedition vessel MV Hondius released a poignant address Wednesday paying tribute to those who lost their lives during a hantavirus outbreak that turned a remote polar voyage into a weeks-long crisis. In a recorded message released by Oceanwide Expeditions Dobrogowski praised the patience and quiet strength shown by the roughly 150 passengers and crew during the ordeal. Our thoughts are with the ones that are no longer with us Dobrogowski said Whatever I say will not ease this loss but I would like you to know that they are with us every day in our hearts and our thoughts. The captain emphasized the unique terror of facing a viral outbreak in the Antarctic region where immediate help is non-existent He noted that due to the lack of readily available rescue services those on board were forced to rely entirely on one another for survival and emotional support. He specifically commended the crew for their selfless resolve and courage while managing the cluster of respiratory illnesses as the ship crossed the Atlantic and called for privacy and respect for the families affected by the tragedy. Hantavirus is a rare disease usually transmitted through infected rodents or their droppings, though the strain responsible for the outbreak, the Andes virus, can also spread between humans. The outbreak has resulted in 11 known infections and three deaths so far, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).