A 26-year-old man in the US died from the same rare rat-infectious disease that killed Gene Hackman's wife, Betsy Arakawa, in February. According to the New York Post, Rodrigo Becerra was found dead at his house on March 6, just three days before his 27th birthday. He had become seriously ill and was given antibiotics the night before he was found convulsing in his Mammoth Lakes home, where he ultimately died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome - a rare infectious disease linked to rodents.
Becerra used to work as a bellhop at Mammoth Mountain Inn, where rodent droppings have since been uncovered behind the establishment's front desk, as per the Post. "A very small amount of rodent droppings were found in the bell area and behind the front desk, very near the front entrance at Mammoth Mountain Inn (MMI)," David Andrews, director of health and safety for Mammoth Mountain Ski area, said.
"The trace amounts found weren't concerning to health officials...We don't have a reason for concern about workplace exposure at MMI for our employees or guests," he added.
The outlet reported that there was no evidence of rodents or droppings at his employer-funded home. Hantavirus is often transmitted to humans by infected rodents through their urine, saliva and faeces. As per the CDC, it does not spread person-to-person and is mainly transmitted by rodents, especially when exposed to their droppings. It also spreads, in extremely rare cases, through a rodent's bite or scratch.
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Becerra's sister, Mariela, said that her brother was sick for two weeks before paramedics found him breathless and without a pulse. She said that the 26-year-old suffered from late stages of the elusive disease, despite the coroner's report stating his cause of death is "pending pathology in toxicology," the outlet reported.
"They didn't think that anything was bad enough to admit him or keep him overnight, but for him to pass away the very next morning is frustrating. They ruled it out. If it even raises awareness to doctors that just because a patient says they don't recall being exposed to mice, that does not mean that it's impossible," she said.
Notably, Betsy Arakawa, the classical pianist married to Hackman, died in February of hantavirus in the couple's New Mexico home.
