90-Second Read: Colorado Hantavirus death not linked to cruise ship outbreak, state says

A Douglas County resident who died after contracting Hantavirus was not connected to the outbreak on Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius, Colorado public health officials said this week. Colorado doesn't see many Hantavirus cases, but they do occur somewhat regularly, the state usually records a handful of infections from the Sin Nombre Hantavirus every year, most commonly in the spring and summer, according to public health records. There have been 132 cases of Sin Nombre Hantavirus in Colorado since the disease was discovered in the Four Corners region in 1993, and 47 of those cases were fatal, with the last fatal case recorded in 2024, according to state officials. Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment officials confirmed the case on Saturday and said a preliminary investigation shows the resident got sick after being exposed to rodents, which is the most common way people are infected.

Deer mice are the most common Hantavirus source in Colorado, and people can prevent illness by avoiding exposure to rodents and their urine, feces, saliva and nesting material, state officials said. This is the strain that was found in a French passenger on the MV Hondius, but is different from the Sin Nombre Hantavirus found in Colorado. Eleven people contracted Hantavirus on a small Dutch cruise ship, the MV Hondius, earlier this month, which is the first outbreak of its kind. French medical officials on Saturday said scientists had fully sequenced the virus from a MV Hondius case and confirmed that it matches what was previously known about the virus and that there is no evidence it's more transmissible or more dangerous.

Person-to-person transmission is rare and happens with "close and prolonged contact," like among people who live together or are intimate partners, according to the World Health Organization. One specific strain, the Andes virus found in South America, is the only known exception that can rarely spread between people. The outbreak killed three people, including a Dutch couple that officials believe first contracted the virus in South America. The outbreak raised public concerns about another COVID-like disease, but WHO officials have said the risk of spread is very low.