Venezuela confirms 3 people have died of hantavirus infections, with 2 more deaths suspected - AP News

What the report says

The Associated Press reported that Venezuela confirmed three deaths from hantavirus infections on Tuesday, while authorities said they had found no sign that the virus was spreading from person to person. The Health Ministry described the confirmed deaths as occurring in Anzoátegui, an eastern state, and said two additional deaths among health workers in the southwestern state of Barinas are being investigated as suspected hantavirus cases.

According to AP, the ministry said the situations in Anzoátegui and Barinas were separate and did not pose a broader community threat. It also said health personnel would be deployed to the affected states to help ensure public health protections, though it did not provide further details. The Venezuelan Medical Federation said the confirmed deaths in Anzoátegui involved members of the same family in the rural municipality of Miranda.

Hantaviruses are typically associated with exposure to infected rodents, including rats and mice. Human infections are uncommon, and person-to-person transmission is rare, though some strains have been linked to severe disease. In serious cases, infection can lead to life-threatening lung illness or kidney failure.

AP placed the Venezuelan announcement in the context of wider concern after a recent hantavirus outbreak tied to the MV Hondius cruise ship in the Atlantic, where the Andes hantavirus was implicated in deaths and infections. Argentine authorities have continued investigating the source of that outbreak, while testing has reportedly ruled out some suspected locations, including Ushuaia and Mendoza, as sources of rodent infection.