First group of Spanish passengers disembarks from hantavirus-hit cruise ship

TENERIFE, May 10 (Reuters) - A first group of passengers, all Spanish nationals, has begun to disembark into a small boat from the cruise ship which was hit by a hantavirus outbreak and is headed to Tenerife's Port of Granadilla, Spain's health ministry said.

The passengers will be transported directly from the port in military buses to the airport and evacuated by a Spanish government plane to Madrid where they will taken to hospital and quarantined, officials have said.