90-Second Read: Argentine researchers collect rodents for Hantavirus tests

Argentine scientists on Tuesday began collecting rodents in the woods around Ushuaia to search for carriers of Hantavirus in the area from which the virus-stricken MV Hondius set sail. The samples will be tested for the Andes train of Hantavirus detected in several of the Hondius's passengers -- the only known strain to spread between people. The Hantavirus outbreak aboard the Hondius, which set sail from Ushuaia on April 1, triggered a global health scare.

The first of three cruise ship passengers to die from the rodent-borne virus, a Dutchman, spent 48 hours in Ushuaia with his wife before embarking on the cruise, raising suspicions they became infected in Ushuaia. The rodent in the area, which resembles a field mouse, measures 6-8 centimeters (2.4-3.1 inches) and has a tail that can reach 15 cm. Three passengers died from the virus, for which no vaccines nor specific treatments exist.

The World Health Organization has sought to reassure the world that the outbreak is not a repeat of the Covid pandemic. The province has not had a case of Hantavirus since its reporting became mandatory 30 years ago. Wearing gloves and masks they placed the traps in sacks and then took them away to take blood and tissue samples that will be sent to Malbran's headquarters in Buenos Aires for testing.