Travel & Lifestyle: What Is Hantavirus, Disease That Killed Gene Hackman’s Wife?

Just over a week after the actor Gene Hackman and his pianist wife, Betsy Arakawa, were found dead alongside their dog in their Santa Fe, New Mexico, home, authorities revealed what led to their shocking demise.

Hackman, 95, died of cardiovascular disease, with Alzheimer’s disease as a significant contributory factor, about a week after his wife, 65, died of pulmonary syndrome from a relatively rare infection: hantavirus.

Here’s everything you should know about the virus.

Hantavirus is transmitted from rodents to humans, mainly when someone comes into contact with the feces of an infected animal. More rarely, people can contract it if scratched by an infected rodent. In New Mexico, where Arakawa died, the virus is commonly found in deer mice.

Hantavirus is not known to spread between humans in the United States. There have been some claims of human-to-human transmission in Argentina and Chile, but a 2022 study could not find any evidence of that.

“Most transmission occurs around the patient’s residence or workplace,” Erin Phipps, the New Mexico state public health veterinarian, said at a press conference Friday.

Hantavirus should be taken very seriously, Phipps noted

“This is a serious disease. Forty-two percent of these infections here in New Mexico were fatal,” she said.

Heather Jarrell, the chief medical examiner investigating Hackman’s and Arakawa’s deaths, said people will experience symptoms one to eight weeks after exposure.

“Hantavirus infection is characterized by flulike symptoms consisting of fever, muscle aches, cough, sometimes vomiting and diarrhea that can progress to shortness of breath and cardiac or heart failure and lung failure,” she said at Friday’s press conference.

Hantavirus is not common, but human cases are documented every year in the U.S., officials said Friday.

“A small number of human infections are found every year in New Mexico,” Phipps said. “Over the past five years, New Mexico has confirmed between one and seven hantavirus infections in humans each year. Through the end of 2024, we have identified 136 infections over the past 50 years in New Mexico residents, five of these in Santa Fe County.”

Data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that New Mexico had the most hantavirus cases in the country from 1993 to 2021. Case counts are also significant in Colorado, Arizona, California and Washington state.

Jarrell said Arakawa’s case doesn’t appear to be part of a larger outbreak.

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“This is not an unusual case,” she said. “We get cases every year, unfortunately. So we’re not seeing any indications of any abnormal or unusual patterns.”

It’s important to be cautious when you know you’re coming into contact with rodent feces, Phipps said.

″Hantavirus can be transmitted to people through rodent urine, droppings or saliva,” she said Friday. “So it is important to take special steps when cleaning up after rodents. Avoiding contact with or breathing in aerosolized rodent urine or feces, especially in a poorly ventilated area, is key.”

People should use gloves and a well-fitted N95 mask when cleaning rodent-infested areas, and open windows and doors for at least 30 minutes beforehand, Phipps said. They should also use a 10% bleach solution or a commercial disinfectant, let it sit for five minutes and then clean the area with paper towels, she continued.

They should then throw the paper towels away in a covered garbage can that is regularly emptied before removing their gloves, she said, wash their gloved hands with soap and water or with a disinfectant, and then, after removing the gloves, wash their hands again with soap and water.

There’s one way it’s important not to clean, she warned.

“It’s important to never sweep up or vacuum mouse droppings, since this can spread particles up into the air,” Phipps cautioned.