Hantavirus Tracker
Live hantavirus map and hanta virus news tracker — active outbreaks, country case reports, symptoms, mortality rate and cruise-ship reports, updated every five minutes from open news sources.
What is hantavirus?
Hantavirus is a family of zoonotic RNA viruses (genus Orthohantavirus) carried mainly by rodents. Humans are typically infected by inhalation of aerosolized droppings, urine, or saliva from infected rodents. The disease has two principal forms: hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS, ICD-10 B33.4) in the Americas and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS, ICD-10 A98.5) in Eurasia.
This tracker is a surveillance signal, not a diagnostic tool. For clinical guidance, refer to the CDC, the WHO, or your national public health authority.
Frequently asked questions about hantavirus
What is hantavirus?
Hantavirus is a family of zoonotic RNA viruses (genus Orthohantavirus, family Hantaviridae) carried mainly by rodents and shrews. The two principal human disease forms are hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS, ICD-10 B33.4), found mainly in the Americas, and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS, ICD-10 A98.5), found mainly in Eurasia.
What does "hanta" mean? Is it from Hebrew?
No — "hanta" in hantavirus is not Hebrew. The virus is named after the Hantan River (한탄강) in South Korea, near where Hantaan virus, the prototype species of the genus, was first isolated in 1976 by the Korean virologist Ho-Wang Lee. The similar-sounding Hebrew word חנטה (chanatah) means "embalming" or the ripening of fruit and is etymologically unrelated to the virus name.
What are the symptoms of hantavirus?
Hantavirus symptoms typically appear 1–8 weeks after exposure to infected rodents. Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) begins with fever, fatigue, and muscle aches in the thighs, hips, back, and shoulders, often with headache, dizziness, chills, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or abdominal pain; after 4–10 days a cardiopulmonary phase brings cough, shortness of breath, and rapid pulmonary edema. Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) presents with sudden fever, severe headache, back and abdominal pain, blurred vision, facial flushing, low blood pressure, and acute kidney injury. Anyone with these hanta virus symptoms after possible rodent exposure should seek medical care immediately.
How is hantavirus transmitted and how does it spread?
Hantavirus spreads to humans primarily by inhalation of aerosolized particles from infected rodent droppings, urine, or saliva — typically in poorly ventilated indoor spaces with rodent activity. Direct rodent bites can also transmit the virus. Most exposures happen in rural housing, agricultural buildings, sheds, and cabins with recent rodent infestation. Hantavirus does not spread through coughing, sneezing, casual contact, or contaminated food and water in the way many respiratory viruses do.
Is hantavirus contagious between people?
For nearly all hantaviruses, no — person-to-person transmission has not been documented. The single known exception is Andes virus (ANDV) in South America, where rare human-to-human transmission has been reported, including a 2018–2019 outbreak in Argentine Patagonia.
What is Andes virus?
Andes virus (ANDV) is a hantavirus circulating mainly in Argentina and Chile, carried by the long-tailed pygmy rice rat (Oligoryzomys longicaudatus). It causes hantavirus pulmonary syndrome and is the only hantavirus with confirmed person-to-person transmission, documented in clusters such as the 2018–2019 outbreak in Epuyén, Argentine Patagonia. Historical case-fatality estimates for Andes hantavirus range from about 30% to 50%.
What is the mortality rate of hantavirus?
The hantavirus mortality rate depends on the species. Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS), driven mainly by Sin Nombre virus in North America and Andes virus in South America, has a historical case-fatality rate around 35–40%. For hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS), it varies widely: Hantaan virus 5–15%, Dobrava-Belgrade up to ~12%, Seoul virus ~1%, and Puumala (the milder nephropathia epidemica) typically under 1%.
What is the difference between HPS and HFRS?
Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) is the cardiopulmonary form found mainly in the Americas, caused by viruses such as Sin Nombre and Andes. Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) is the renal form found mainly in Europe and Asia, caused by viruses such as Hantaan, Seoul, Puumala, and Dobrava-Belgrade.
Is there hantavirus on cruise ships?
Hantavirus is not typically associated with cruise ships and does not spread between people (with the rare exception of Andes virus). When hantavirus appears in cruise-related news, it usually involves a passenger or crew member who was exposed to infected rodent droppings before or during travel — not onboard person-to-person transmission. Any current hanta virus cruise ship reports will appear in the live news feed and on the country page for the relevant port. The much more common cruise-ship outbreaks involve norovirus and are unrelated to hantavirus.
How does this hantavirus tracker work?
Hantavirus Tracker ingests open news signals every five minutes from a global feed (hantaflow.com), geolocates each report to a country, and de-duplicates by URL and headline. The counts shown reflect media reporting volume, not laboratory-confirmed case counts. Each signal links back to its original news source so you can verify it.
Where are hantavirus outbreaks happening right now?
The live world map and country list above show every country currently reporting hantavirus signals. Click any country to open its dedicated page with the recent reports, regional epidemiological context (continent, predominant syndrome type, principal rodent reservoir), and links to authoritative sources. Reports update automatically every five minutes.
Last updated Thu, 14 May 2026 06:30:43 UTC