90-Second Read: Argentina expands Hantavirus probe, sending teams to trap and test rats in Mendoza

Argentina is expanding its investigation into a Hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship. The rare outbreak on the MV Hondius was caused by the Andes Hantavirus, a disease carried by rodents endemic to Argentina and Chile and the only Hantavirus thought to be able to spread between people in some cases. On Friday, the ministry said specialists from Malbran, together with U.S. counterparts at the CDC, were preparing to test rodents for the Hantavirus in the city of Malargüe, Mendoza from June 8-12.

Shortly after news of the outbreak emerged, Argentina's Health Ministry identified Ushuaia as a possible source of the contagion and last month sent investigators from the Malbran government research institute to collect rodent samples in various wooded areas around the city. While the Andes Hantavirus infects a few dozen people every year in the Patagonian region of Argentina further north, it has never been detected in Ushuaia or the wider archipelago of Tierra del Fuego. A spokesperson for the Malbran Institute confirmed that the Dutch couple visited Malargüe as they drove through the winemaking region of Mendoza to the northeastern province of Misiones during the last leg of their trip in Argentina.

The World Health Organization has made clear that, given the low risk of transmission, the Hantavirus will not become a pandemic threat. Still, the Andes Hantavirus has raised concerns around the world due to its mortality rate, as high as 30%, and the current lack of treatment and vaccines. Scientists will trap and test rats in Mendoza while awaiting lab results from Ushuaia, authorities said Friday.