Argentine authorities are investigating whether rubbish deposits contaminated a couple of Dutch tourists who visited a place to observe birds
health authorities of Argentina investigate a garbage dump near Ushuaiain the south of the country, as a possible site of contagion for a couple of tourists from Netherlands for the . The case led to a : 8 people were infected and 3 died.
The garbage dump, located near Ushuaia, attracts birdwatchers due to the large number of species that fly over the area. The conditions at the landfill also favor the proliferation of rodents carrying the hantavirus, a disease transmitted through contact with excrement, saliva or urine from these animals.
The tourist couple visited the landfill during a bird watching activity. They landed in Argentina on November 27, 2025 and traveled around the country by car. They also traveled to the Chile and the Uruguay before returning to Argentine territory at the end of March 2026.
Boarding the cruise ship in Ushuaia took place on April 1st. Symptoms of the disease began shortly after. The 70-year-old tourist died in Saint Helena. His 69-year-old wife died in South Africa during the attempt to return to Europe.
To confirm whether the landfill is, in fact, the origin of the outbreak, technical teams will go to the site to capture rodents and look for traces of the virus. The results of the analyzes have not yet been released.
THE OUTBREAK
The strain identified in the outbreak is the Andes variant. This is the only known strain of hantavirus capable of transmission between humans. This characteristic would explain how the infection spread to other people after the couple boarded the Hondius.
The outbreak affected 8 people, and 3 deaths were recorded.
