U.S. spends $750K to evacuate American from Pitcairn Island after hantavirus cruise exposure

The U.S. State Department allocated $750,000 to charter a private yacht – owned by a French private explorer – to evacuate a single American citizen from Pitcairn Island, a remote British territory with no airport. The woman, who may have been exposed to hantavirus while aboard the Dutch cruise liner MV Hondius in April, flew to San Francisco and then traveled to Pitcairn via Tahiti. French Polynesian authorities initially refused her entry because she had not disclosed the exposure. The evacuation will transport her, while asymptomatic, to Easter Island (a Chilean territory) where she can catch flights to Santiago and return to the United States.

The operation adds to the State Department’s emergency “K Fund” budget strain, which is at its lowest level in seven years. Officials indicated the fund may need up to $50 million transferred from other accounts. The MV Hondius outbreak later caused illnesses and at least three deaths among passengers. A State Department spokesperson said, “when an American is at risk abroad and unable to access commercial transportation, the Department of State seeks to provide appropriate assistance.”