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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsHantavirus is a family of viruses carried mainly by rodents. Some types cause hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS), a serious illness that affects the lungs and can worsen quickly. New Mexico authorities announced that Betsy Arakawa died of HPS; Gene Hackman’s reported cause of death was cardiovascular disease, with Alzheimer’s disease contributing.
That determination does not mean Hackman died from hantavirus or that he tested positive for it. The publicly available information also does not establish the exact rodent, object, building, or cleanup activity that exposed Arakawa.
What is hantavirus?
“Hantavirus” is not the name of one single virus or one single disease. It describes a group of viruses maintained mainly by particular rodent species. Infected rodents can carry the viruses without appearing sick and may shed them in urine, droppings, saliva, and nesting material.
People can become ill when contaminated material is disturbed and particles become airborne, allowing them to be inhaled. Exposure can also occur when contaminated material reaches the eyes, nose, or mouth, through bites or scratches, or by eating contaminated food.
The World Health Organization explains that different hantaviruses are associated with specific rodent reservoirs and can cause different illnesses depending on the virus and region.
HPS and HFRS: the two major hantavirus illnesses
The geographic distinction is useful, although it is not an absolute rule:
| Illness | Where it is most associated | Main systems affected |
|---|---|---|
| Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) | The Americas, including the United States | The lungs and cardiovascular system |
| Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) | More commonly Europe and Asia | The kidneys; severe cases can involve bleeding and low blood pressure |
Arakawa’s diagnosed illness was specifically hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, not simply “hantavirus.” In the United States, deer mice are the main carrier of the hantavirus most commonly associated with HPS. A household cannot determine whether a particular wild mouse is infected by looking at it.
What happened to Betsy Arakawa and Gene Hackman?
Arakawa and Hackman were found dead at their Santa Fe, New Mexico, home on February 26, 2025. On March 7, New Mexico officials announced that Arakawa had died from HPS. Contemporaneous reporting on the state medical investigator’s announcement said Hackman died from hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with Alzheimer’s disease as a significant contributing factor. ABC News’ report on the announcement provides those details.
Public reporting about environmental conditions at the property does not prove a particular transmission event. It would be inaccurate to say that a named mouse, room, object, or cleaning activity infected Arakawa unless an official investigation established that fact. Source New Mexico’s report distinguishes reported environmental findings from proof of the exact source.
The phrase “rodent-passed illness” is understandable in a headline, but rodent-borne virus is more precise. The available evidence does not show that Hackman died from hantavirus or tested positive for it.
How do people get hantavirus?
Exposure usually comes from infected rodents or their waste. Breathing contaminated air while disturbing rodent urine, droppings, or nesting material is a common route. Risk can rise during activities such as:
- sweeping or brushing rodent droppings;
- vacuuming contaminated floors, carpets, furniture, or nesting material;
- cleaning out a shed, garage, cabin, attic, crawl space, or vehicle with rodent activity; or
- handling contaminated material and then touching the eyes, nose, or mouth.
Exposure may also occur through bites or scratches, or by eating contaminated food. Person-to-person spread is not known for hantaviruses found in the United States. The CDC identifies Andes virus in South America as an exception that can spread through close contact with an ill person. This is another reason not to describe all hantaviruses as if they behave identically.
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- Author: American Medical Association.
- Publisher: Wiley
- Pages: 1200
- Publication Date: 2004-08-01
- Edition: Fourth
What should pet owners know?
For households with dogs, cats, rabbits, or other pets, the practical priority is to control rodents and keep animals away from contaminated areas. Hantavirus prevention guidance is primarily written around human exposure, and the public evidence about Arakawa’s case does not establish a pet-related route.
- Store pet food in sealed, rodent-resistant containers and clean up spilled food promptly.
- Keep pets and children out of rooms, sheds, garages, vehicles, or other areas with rodent droppings or nesting material until the area has been safely cleaned.
- Do not allow a pet to investigate or eat rodent waste or a dead rodent. If that has happened, contact a veterinarian and, when appropriate, the local or state health department for case-specific advice.
- If a pet’s bedding, cage, carrier, or food-storage area is contaminated, isolate the item or area and obtain professional guidance before cleaning extensive material.
These precautions do not mean that every pet exposed to a mouse is infected, nor do they establish that ordinary contact with a pet spreads North American HPS. They reduce the chance that a person or animal will disturb contaminated material.
Hantavirus symptoms: what early illness can look like
HPS symptoms usually begin one to eight weeks after contact with an infected rodent, according to the CDC. Early symptoms are nonspecific and may resemble influenza or another infection. They can include:
- fever and chills;
- marked fatigue;
- muscle aches, often in large muscle groups;
- headache;
- dizziness;
- nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea; and
- abdominal pain.
The later respiratory phase may begin four to ten days after initial symptoms. Warning symptoms include cough, shortness of breath, chest tightness, and fluid in the lungs. The illness can worsen quickly once breathing symptoms begin. Recovery can take weeks to months.
The CDC reports that 38% of people who develop respiratory symptoms may die from HPS. This is a population statistic, not a prediction for an individual patient.
Seek urgent medical care if you develop compatible symptoms after possible rodent exposure, and tell the clinician about the exposure. Suspected HPS is an emergency. Severe difficulty breathing, blue or gray lips, confusion, collapse, or rapidly worsening symptoms are emergencies: call emergency services.
Symptoms alone cannot diagnose hantavirus. This information is educational and is not a substitute for examination or professional medical advice.
How is hantavirus diagnosed?
There is no single symptom that confirms HPS. Clinicians consider symptoms, the speed of progression, physical findings, and a history of rodent exposure. Early HPS can look like influenza and other illnesses, which can make recognition difficult.
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A blood test is often needed to establish the diagnosis, according to the CDC. Anyone who may have been exposed should not wait for a home test or try to diagnose the illness from symptoms. Seek urgent medical evaluation and mention the rodent exposure.
How is hantavirus treated?
There is no specific treatment for hantavirus infection. Treatment is supportive and may require immediate emergency care, preferably in an intensive care unit. Care may include oxygen, carefully managed fluids, monitoring heart function, and mechanical ventilation when needed.
Early intensive care is critical because a patient can move from a nonspecific febrile illness to severe respiratory disease over a short period. Antibiotics do not treat a virus, and there is no over-the-counter product that can cure HPS. Doctors may initially evaluate several possible infections while testing and clinical observation clarify the diagnosis.
The WHO’s hantavirus fact sheet summarizes disease patterns and supportive care.
How to prevent hantavirus around the home
The CDC identifies rodent control as the primary prevention strategy for HPS. Prevention combines exclusion, sanitation, food management, and safe handling of contaminated material.
1. Seal entry points
Inspect the home, garage, shed, cabin, attic, crawl space, outbuildings, and vehicles for openings. Seal gaps around doors, pipes, vents, foundations, roof lines, and utility penetrations. For larger openings, homeowners may need rodent-proof hardware cloth and sealing materials; fit the material securely rather than using it as a temporary patch.
2. Remove food, water, and nesting opportunities
Store human and pet food in rodent-resistant containers. Clean spills, secure garbage, repair leaks, reduce clutter, and move firewood, hay, brush, and other possible nesting material away from buildings where practical. Keep animal feed from being left in accessible containers overnight if rodents are a problem.
3. Reduce the rodent population safely
Trapping can be one part of a control plan. Mouse snap traps may help reduce rodents inside a home, but traps do not seal entry points, remove existing contaminated waste, or eliminate all hantavirus risk. Follow local guidance for trap placement and disposal, keep traps away from children and pets, and do not handle rodents or contaminated materials with bare hands.
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4. Treat rodent waste as potentially contaminated
It is generally impossible for a household to know which wild rodents carry hantavirus. That does not mean every dropping contains the virus; it means waste should be handled in a way that avoids creating airborne dust.
How to clean a small amount of rodent urine or droppings
For a small amount of contamination in a home environment, CDC guidance recommends wet cleaning rather than sweeping or vacuuming. Follow the CDC’s full cleanup procedure and the disinfectant label:
- Keep people and pets out of the area. Improve ventilation where it is safe and practical, and avoid stirring up dust.
- Put on rubber or plastic gloves. Gloves are a relevant basic precaution but do not provide complete protection by themselves.
- Thoroughly wet the urine or droppings with an EPA-registered disinfectant and follow its label.
- Allow the material to soak. Do not immediately sweep, brush, or vacuum it.
- Wipe up the wet material with paper towels and discard the waste appropriately.
- Disinfect the surface again after the material has been removed.
- Remove the gloves carefully and wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water.
An EPA-registered disinfectant is a product category, not a guarantee that any particular spray is suitable for every surface. Follow the product label for contact time, ventilation, dilution, and disposal. Never mix bleach with ammonia or any other cleaner; dangerous fumes can result.
Do not use a vacuum cleaner or broom on dry droppings, urine, or nesting material. A mask by itself is not a substitute for wet cleaning, ventilation, gloves, rodent exclusion, and appropriate professional help.
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When not to clean the area yourself
Household instructions for a small amount of waste are not a safe substitute for a remediation plan in every situation. Stop and seek public-health or professional guidance for:
- heavy rodent infestations;
- large amounts of droppings or urine;
- extensive nesting material;
- dead rodents in enclosed spaces;
- contamination in ventilation systems, crawl spaces, attics, or other difficult-to-access areas; or
- areas that cannot be safely ventilated.
For these situations, a licensed pest-exclusion or rodent-remediation professional may be more appropriate than improvising with consumer cleaning equipment. Ask what precautions, waste handling, and follow-up exclusion work are included, and check local licensing or public-health requirements.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.U.S. hantavirus surveillance
The CDC began hantavirus surveillance in 1993 during a Four Corners outbreak. HPS became nationally notifiable in 1995. In 2014, national reporting expanded to include laboratory-confirmed hantavirus infections without pulmonary symptoms.
What the news does—and does not—show
The official account, as reported at the time, establishes that Betsy Arakawa died from HPS and that Gene Hackman died from cardiovascular disease with Alzheimer’s disease as a significant contributing condition. It does not establish that Arakawa’s infection came from a specific mouse, that a particular household object caused it, or that Hackman tested positive for hantavirus.
For most U.S. households, the useful lesson is not to panic about ordinary contact with another person. It is to prevent rodents from entering, keep food and nesting sites under control, and never create an airborne cloud by sweeping or vacuuming dry rodent waste.
Sources
- CDC: Hantavirus prevention
- CDC: How to clean up after rodents
- CDC: Clinical overview of HPS
- CDC: About hantavirus
- WHO: Hantavirus fact sheet
- WHO: Information on limited person-to-person transmission associated with Andes virus
- ABC News/AP: March 7, 2025, official announcement on the deaths
- Source New Mexico: reporting on the New Mexico investigation
- New York State Department of Health: Hantavirus fact sheet
FAQ
Can I catch hantavirus from my dog or cat?
The usual U.S. HPS exposure is contact with contaminated material from infected rodents, not ordinary contact with a household pet. Keep pets away from rodent waste and dead rodents, and contact a veterinarian or public-health department if a pet has had direct contact with potentially contaminated material.
Should I vacuum mouse droppings if I wear a mask?
No. CDC guidance says not to sweep or vacuum rodent urine, droppings, or nesting material because those actions can put contaminated particles into the air. For a small amount of waste, wet-clean it according to the CDC procedure and disinfectant label. A mask alone does not make dry cleanup safe.
When should a rodent problem be handled by a professional?
Seek public-health guidance or a qualified pest-remediation professional for heavy infestations, extensive nesting material, dead rodents in enclosed spaces, contamination in attics or ventilation systems, or any area that cannot be safely ventilated.
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Early HPS symptoms can include fever, fatigue, and muscle aches, as well as headache, dizziness, chills, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or abdominal pain. If compatible symptoms follow possible rodent exposure, seek urgent medical evaluation and mention the exposure.
Can hantavirus be treated?
There is no specific treatment for hantavirus infection. Suspected HPS needs immediate emergency care; supportive treatment may include oxygen, close monitoring, and breathing support.
The Bottom Line
Bottom line: Hantavirus is a group of rodent-borne viruses, and the illness diagnosed in Betsy Arakawa was hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. The public evidence does not show that Gene Hackman died from hantavirus or tested positive for it. Prevent exposure by sealing rodent entry points, securing food—including pet food—and wet-cleaning small amounts of waste without sweeping or vacuuming. Anyone who develops compatible symptoms after rodent exposure should seek urgent medical care.
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