Guardia Civil officer dies after heart attack during MV Hondius operation in Granadilla

A Guardia Civil officer died on Sunday, May 11, after suffering a heart attack during the operation mounted for the arrival of the cruise ship MV Hondius at the port of Granadilla de Abona in Tenerife. The officer was taking part in the security and coordination effort around the controlled disembarkation of passengers from the ship, which had been placed under emergency protocols after a hantavirus outbreak on board. Spain’s health minister, Mónica García, publicly offered condolences to the officer’s family and the Guardia Civil at the port that day. In the days since, the Unified Association of Civil Guards, or AUGC, has said the officer’s assignment and working hours should be investigated. ### Who was the officer and what was he doing at the port? AUGC identified the officer as a 63-year-old Guardia Civil member in reserve status who held a post in the Plana Mayor of the Tenerife command. The association said he had been assigned to the Hondius device despite being “en situación de reserva y fuera de especialidad,” and said he was carrying out duties linked to the port operation. (euronews.com) Euronews, citing the operation at the port, reported that the officer collapsed while assisting with the controlled disembarkation of passengers from the MV Hondius. The ship had arrived under a large health and security deployment because of the confirmed hantavirus outbreak on board. ### What does AUGC say happened during his shift? (augc.org) AUGC said the officer began his day at 06:00 by driving from Santa Cruz de Tenerife to the port of Granadilla de Abona. The association said that more than 14 hours later he was still on duty, moving materials and performing functions that, in its account, may not have matched his administrative status. (euronews.com) The association said the officer suffered the heart attack at about 21:40. OKDIARIO and AUGC both reported the same sequence and timing, based on the union’s account published on May 15. ### Why is the reserve-duty status at the center of the dispute? AUGC said the key issue is a Jan. 26, 2026 instruction signed by Guardia Civil Director General Mercedes González governing duties for personnel in reserve status. (augc.org) According to the association, that instruction limits reserve personnel outside their specialty to defined tasks such as training, staff work, administrative management, institutional representation, advising commanders and static security inside facilities. (okdiario.com) The same instruction, as quoted by AUGC, says exposure to risks to physical integrity should be avoided, whether through direct exposure to conflict situations or through tasks requiring intense physical effort. AUGC said assigning the officer to the advanced post in the Hondius operation, with contact with potentially contaminated materials and an extended shift, may have directly breached that instruction. That claim is AUGC’s allegation; no official investigative finding was available in the sources reviewed. (augc.org) ### What have officials said publicly? Mónica García said at the port that she wanted to express condolences to the officer’s family and to the Guardia Civil. Other reports cited condolences from Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska after the death became public on May 11. Public reporting reviewed here did not show a detailed Guardia Civil response to AUGC’s claims about staffing, reserve-duty rules or the length of the shift. (augc.org) The available official comments in the immediate aftermath focused on condolences during the Hondius emergency operation. ### What happens next? AUGC said on May 15 that it wants the Guardia Civil’s Occupational Risk Prevention Service to open an immediate investigation into whether the officer’s assignment to the Hondius operation was lawful and whether responsibility existed in the chain of command. (euronews.com) The association also said it wants age treated as an occupational risk factor in similar deployments. The next formal step, based on AUGC’s statement, is whether that prevention service opens the inquiry the union requested. Any official findings on the officer’s assignment, duties or command decisions would be expected to come through that process. (augc.org)