Arizona man who survived hantavirus 24 years ago, but lost mom and sister, says recent outbreak is “hard” to process
Twenty-four years ago, Arizona photojournalist Gilbert Zermeño, who hired hantavirus after losing his mother and sister to the disease, according to news from recent epidemic was difficult to deal with.
“I guess I had the same feeling as anyone who has ever contracted the hantavirus and is still experiencing the effects afterwards,” Zermeño told CBS News’ “The Daily Report.” “It takes you back, and it’s no less painful now than it was then. It’s hard. I’m not going to lie.”
In 2002, Zermeño discovered he had contracted hantavirus after cleaning the family home in Texas after the deaths of his mother and sister. He had been exposed to rodent droppings, became infected and spent several days in a Phoenix hospital.
Health officials around the world monitor deadly cases hantavirus outbreak linked to a Dutch-flagged vessel cruise ship which caused nine confirmed or suspected cases, including three deaths.
Zermeño believes that online misinformation about the disease has panicked some of the public because of the word “virus.”
“But I’m here just to tell people, look, you need to do some research about this because it’s not as scary as COVID-19,” Zermeño said.
Ann Lindstrand, the World Health Organization representative in Cape Verde, told CBS News on Tuesday that there was no risk of a pandemic-level threat given the low likelihood of human-to-human transmission. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
In a statement Wednesday, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, acting director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said hantavirus “is not spread by people without symptoms, transmission requires close contact, and the risk to the American public is very low.”
Zermeño says her mother and sister were initially misdiagnosed and doctors initially said they died of sepsis, but later determined it was hantavirus. He said the rarity of the disease complicated his own diagnosis and treatment, but with the help of family members in the medical community, he was able to get a proper diagnosis.
“Listen to your healthcare professionals and develop a plan in case you feel you have been exposed to hantavirus or to someone who has had hantavirus,” Zermeño said. “The likelihood of you catching it from person to person is tiny.”
