Renowned actor Gene Hackman and his pianist wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in separate rooms at their Santa Fe property on February 26, 2025.
The couple, who had been married since 1991, died on different dates, according to the autopsy results.
The Academy Awarded actor died of cardiovascular disease, with his Alzheimer’s being a contributing factor, a week after Arakawa’s passing. Authorities believe that Hackman was probably unaware his wife was dead.
Arakawa died of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rare disease contracted from infected rodent droppings or saliva.
According to TMZ, dead rodents and their nests were found in “eight detached outbuildings” across Heckman’s property, creating ideal conditions for hantavirus.
There have also been traps around the property, suggesting the couple tried to get rid of the rodents.
Authorities were first alerted that something was wrong with the actor and his wife after the caretaker of their Santa Fe property called 911 and told them they couldn’t enter the house. Also, they said they believed they could see two bodies through the windows.
One of the couple’s dogs, Zinna, was also dead, while the rest of the dogs were alive.
On February 10, two days before it was determined she had passed away, Arakawa Googled “can Covid cause dizziness?” and “flu and nosebleeds.”
The following day, she called a clinic to cancer her appointment saying her husband experienced “flu/cold-like symptoms” but had tested negative for Covid.
She also ordered oxygen canisters for “respiratory support” from Amazon.
On the day she passed, Arakawa made several calls to the Cloudberry Health clinic.
According to the Mirror, Dr Josiah Child, a former emergency care specialist who now runs the clinic, told The Mail, “Mrs Hackman didn’t die on February 11 because she called my clinic on February 12.”
He explained: “She’d called me a couple of weeks before her death to ask about getting an echocardiogram [heart scan] for her husband. She was not a patient of mine, but one of my patients recommended Cloudberry to her. She made an appointment for herself for February 12. It was for something unrelated to anything respiratory.”
She never appeared at the clinic.
Since her passing, three more cases of people dying from the same virus have been reported in California.
“A third case of Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS), each of which has been fatal, is tragic and alarming,” Dr Tom Boo, Mono County Public Health Officer said.
“We don’t have a clear sense of where this young adult may have contracted the virus. The home had no evidence of mouse activity. We observed some mice in the workplace, which is not unusual for indoor spaces this time of year in Mammoth Lakes.
“We haven’t identified any other activities in the weeks before illness that would have increased this person’s exposure to mice or their droppings. We’ve been aware of this suspected case for some weeks, but it has taken time to obtain testing.”
Dr Boo added: “The occurrence of three cases in a short period has me worried, especially this early in the year. Historically, we tend to see Hantavirus cases later in the spring and in the summer. We’ve now gone about a month without any additional suspect cases, but remain concerned about the increase in activity.”
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