Argentina’s health ministry announced it will begin testing rodents for hantavirus as concerns grow over the deadly outbreak aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship — as cases of the rare strain increased by a startling 86% in the country last year.
The ministry said the vermin trapping and testing will take place in the southern city of Ushuaia — where health officials believe the outbreak may have originated.
Argentine officials said a now-deceased Dutch couple picked up a rare strain of the virus from rodents while visiting a landfill during a bird-watching tour in the city of Ushuaia — just days before they boarded the cruise on March 20.
Follow the latest updates on the hantavirus outbreak stemming from the MV Hondius cruise ship
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