Following a swell of interest in hantavirus after a cruise ship outbreak last week, New Mexico health officials seek to reassure residents that human-to-human transmission risk remains extremely low.
A hantavirus outbreak sickened at least eight people on a Dutch cruise ship, according to the World Health Organization, resulting in three deaths. Health officials identified the virus as the Andes strain, which is found in Chile and Argentina. It is the only hantavirus strain to have documented person-to-person transmission, but spread is rare and usually linked to close contact over time.
More than 30 strains of hantaviruses exist and can cause serious respiratory conditions after infection, according to New Mexico Department of Health officials.
“Prevention is always important here in New Mexico because it does circulate in rodents here,” Public Health Veterinarian Dr. Erin Phipps told Source NM. “I do want to emphasize that the Sin Nombre virus, the virus that circulates in New Mexico, does not transmit person-to-person. It transmits only from rodents to humans.”
So far, the state has reported only one case in 2026.
Phipps said no New Mexicans were reported to be on the cruise ship, according to NMDOH.
New Mexico leads the nation in hantavirus infections reported over years. Between 1975 and 2025, New Mexico reported 142 Sin Nombre hantavirus cases resulting in 55 deaths, according to the state’s health department. The disease was the cause of the high-profile death of Betsy Arakawa, the classical pianist married to actor Gene Hackman, who were both found dead in their Santa Fe home last year.
Flu-like symptoms of the hantavirus pulmonary syndrome typically develop within one to six weeks from exposure, and can progress into a severe illness. There is no specific treatment for hantavirus, only supportive treatment to reduce fever and ease symptoms, Phipps said.
The biggest threat to contracting hantavirus in New Mexico remains coming into contact with infected droppings or nests.
The NMDOH has a step-by-step guide to preventing contraction of hantavirus, which includes always using a mask and gloves for contact with rodents and soaking nests and droppings with a disinfectant such as a 10% bleach solution before wiping them up with paper towels. The guide states to never vacuum or sweep up rodent droppings because that can spread virus particles, which can then be inhaled.
“I think it’s important to make sure that we provide accurate information to the public so that they know how to best protect themselves,” Phipps said.
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