Colorado resident dies from hantavirus, health officials confirm

A Douglas County adult resident has died from hantavirus, state and county health officials confirmed.

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) said it is investigating the case, adding that it is not linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship outbreak, Denver7 News reports.

Early findings suggest the individual was exposed locally through contact with rodents, which remains the most common source of hantavirus infection in Colorado, according to CDPHE.

The agency did not identify the deceased resident or disclose the date of death.

State health officials noted that Sin Nombre hantavirus infections occur regularly in Colorado, typically during spring and summer, and can cause severe and sometimes fatal respiratory illness.

Hantaviruses have existed for centuries and are believed to be widespread globally. The disease received renewed public attention last year after Betsy Arakawa, the wife of late actor Gene Hackman, died from a hantavirus infection in New Mexico.

The virus is usually transmitted when people inhale airborne particles from rodent droppings, urine, saliva, or nesting materials. However, the strain linked to the cruise ship outbreak, the Andes virus, may in rare cases be capable of human-to-human transmission.

CDPHE emphasized that avoiding exposure to rodents and their waste remains the most effective prevention method.

“The state health agency said the risk to the general public remains low, and the investigation is ongoing,” officials added.

According to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Colorado recorded approximately 121 hantavirus cases between 1993 and 2023.

By Vafa Guliyeva