Karina Vargas joined the ABC 10News team in Jan. 2026 as a Multimedia Journalist.
SAN DIEGO — American passengers from a cruise ship hit with a hantavirus outbreak are back in the United States. San Diego County health officials say they are monitoring the situation and there is no need for panic.
'The risk to Californians is really low and especially here in San Diego. Since the year 2000, we've only had 4 cases of hantavirus and the majority of those were in travel related cases so not even acquired here locally,' Ankita Kadakia, deputy public health officer for the County of San Diego, said. According to the CDC, hantavirus is spread through contact with infected rodents.
'The virus can be in their saliva, feces or droppings,' Kadakia said. San Diego County does see cases of rodents infected with hantavirus, but the strain seen locally is not the same strain connected to the cruise ship outbreak.
'The vast majority of strains of hantavirus are mouse or animal to human transmission. Not human to human transmission. So the Andes strain, which is found in Argentina, there is evidence that there is human to human transmission,' Dr. Ahmed Salem, a pulmonologist at Sharp Memorial Hospital, said. Salem treated hantavirus during the 2012 Yosemite National Park outbreak.
'One of the ways you die from hantavirus is you get a collapse of your cardiac system and your pulmonary system and you have to go on something called ECMO. It's one of the most aggressive forms of life support that you can do. So I do remember that case, and unfortunately, that person passed away,' Salem said. There is currently no cure or vaccine for hantavirus.
Health officials stress that for those who were not on the cruise ship, the risk of contracting the virus remains low. This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
Cdc Cruise Shi[ Hantavirus Hantavirus Outbreak Rodents San Diego Sharp Memorial
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