The records of the New Mexico Public Health Department, obtained by CNN, revealed the existence of rodents dead and rodent nests in eight attachments on the property of the late actor Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa.
Environmental assessment of the extensive property was held in March, a week after Hackman and his wife were found dead at his home in February.
Arakawa died of pulmonary syndrome by, a rare disease that humans can contract due to contact with rodents, rodent stools, saliva and urine, according to the New Mexico medical investigator’s office. The woman was 65 years old.
According to the report, rodent feces were found in three garages, two small houses and three barracks. In the three garages were found a living rodent, a dead rodent and a nest of rodents.
The New Mexico Health Department team conducted the risk assessment on March 5 as part of the Hackman and Arakawa death investigation to ensure the safety of rescuers and family members who had access to property. The risk of exposure at the main residence was low, according to New Mexico State Public Health Veterinarian Erin Phipps. The report indicates that the residence had no signs of rodent activity and was clean.
The other eight buildings of the property were accessible to rodents, according to the report. In two property vehicles (listed as work vehicles or abandoned or agricultural equipment), rodents, a nest and feces were also seen. The investigators also found vivid traps in the annexes.
Hantavirus is a rare but severe disease that resulted in the death of 41% of patients in New Mexico. The state of the southwest has recorded the largest number of cases of hantavirus in the country.
Mayo Clinic advises to avoid contact with rodents, if possible, and use protection when cleaning rodent habitats due to limited treatments for the disease. Currently, there is no specific treatment for Hantavirus and symptoms, which at first present themselves as flu, may take up to two months to appear, according to the CDC.
Heather Jarrell, a medical school -coroner coroner, said Arakawa suddenly died from Hantavirus, while Hackman died days later due to complications of hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, being advanced Alzheimer’s disease a factor that contributed to his death. I was 95 years old.
