In response to a hantavirus outbreak that led to three deaths on the MV Hondius cruise ship, Argentine investigators have initiated a rodent-trapping operation in the forests surrounding Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego. This area was previously deemed free of the deadly hantavirus. The fieldwork is being carried out by scientists from the state-supported Malbrán Institute, who are collecting dead rats from 150 box traps for blood sampling. The samples will be sent to Buenos Aires for testing to confirm the presence of hantavirus, particularly the Andes virus, which is transmitted by the 'colilargo' rat subspecies. Results from these tests are expected to take up to one month. Local health authorities are backing the investigation, which aims to clarify the outbreak's source amidst local officials' disputes over the national government's assertion that the outbreak originated in Ushuaia. Additionally, the inquiry addresses concerns that climate change may be expanding the range of rodents capable of carrying the virus, highlighting the need for ongoing surveillance in the region.