Argentine authorities have expanded their investigation into a rare hantavirus outbreak that struck an Atlantic cruise ship, dispatching scientists to the western province of Mendoza to trap and test rodents. This move comes as laboratory results are still awaited from Ushuaia, the southernmost city where the MV Hondius cruise began.
The rare outbreak on the MV Hondius was caused by the Andes hantavirus, a disease carried by rodents endemic to Argentina and Chile. Crucially, it is the only hantavirus thought to be capable of human-to-human transmission in some cases, making the investigation particularly urgent. Biologists from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are set to join the mission in Mendoza next week, highlighting the international concern.
