90-Second Read: Super El Niño Could Raise Hantavirus Risk

A potential Super El Niño could indirectly raise the risk of Hantavirus cases by creating conditions that allow rodent populations to grow, according to Smithsonian educational material on El Niño and disease. The concern is not that El Niño itself causes Hantavirus. Daily Voice reported Tuesday, May 19, that AccuWeather said El Niño is expected to develop around the start of summer and could reach rare Super El Niño status as early as October or November. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says Hantaviruses are spread mainly by rodents and can cause serious illness and death.

The CDC's Emerging Infectious Diseases journal says the 1993 Four Corners outbreak followed an El Niño winter that brought more moisture, more spring vegetation, and explosive growth in the deer mouse population. Scientists later identified the disease as Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome and linked it to the Sin Nombre virus. Earlier report: Super El Niño Likely To Emerge: What It Means For Weather Patterns This Year For the Northeast, AccuWeather has forecast a slower transition to consistent summerlike warmth, followed by a possible late-summer surge of heat and humidity. That outbreak struck the region where New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and Utah meet.

Heavy rain and warmer conditions can lead to more vegetation. When rodent populations surge, they can move closer to homes, cabins, sheds, garages, and campsites. That can increase the chance that people come into contact with infected rodents or their urine, droppings, saliva, or nesting materials. The CDC says people can reduce risk by keeping rodents out of homes and safely cleaning up rodent urine, droppings, and nesting materials.