Overview
- Hospital Ramón Carrillo confirmed PCR positivity for hantavirus in a patient who arrived Saturday with flu‑like symptoms and died about 48 hours later in intensive care.
- The hospital activated its hantavirus protocol and placed close contacts in isolation, with officials citing two family members and five coworkers, though some outlets reported different counts.
- Epidemiologists are reconstructing the man's movements, including a mid‑January trek to the Dora and Santa Ana waterfalls near the Chile border and a February fishing trip to Alicurá.
- Specialists note higher risk in the Santa Ana area due to dense Valdivian forest and caña colihue, habitat of the colilargo rodent that transmits the virus.
- Río Negro's health ministry reissued summer guidance for campers and trekkers, and local reports identify this as the area's second hantavirus case of 2026.