Actor Gene Hackman and his wife died of natural causes a week apart
Kyiv • UNN
Gene Hackman died of heart disease a week after his wife passed away from a rare hantavirus. The couple was found dead in their home in Santa Fe.
Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman died of natural causes about a week after his wife Betsy Arakawa passed away from a rare virus, the New Mexico medical examiner in the U.S. reported, according to UNN citing BBC.
Details
95-year-old Hackman died at his home in Santa Fe from ischemic heart disease, and the progressing Alzheimer's disease was a contributing factor.
65-year-old Arakawa died in the same home from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS), a respiratory illness caused by contact with infected rodents. Her cause of death was deemed natural.
Authorities believe she died about seven days before her husband, with whom she had been married for over 30 years.
It is quite likely that Arakawa died first on February 11, Dr. Heather Jarrell from the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator said at a press conference on Friday. She stated that it is "reasonable to conclude" that Hackman died on February 18.
The last known movements and correspondence of Arakawa occurred on February 11, when she was seen walking to a grocery store, CVS pharmacy, and pet store before returning home early in the evening.
Given that Hackman was in the late stages of Alzheimer's disease, "it is quite possible that he did not know that she [his wife] had died," Dr. Jarrell said.
Hackman had "serious heart disease, and ultimately this led to his death," Dr. Jarrell said, adding that he had chronic high blood pressure.
Recently, he had not been eating anything, but there were no signs of dehydration, she added.
At the press conference, veterinarian Erin Phipps from the New Mexico Department of Health emphasized that hantavirus infections are extremely rare.
HPS is transmitted through contact with rodent droppings, urine, or saliva, often through inhalation of contaminated dust.
She noted that in the last 50 years, 136 cases of the disease have been reported in the state, 42% of which ended in death.
Investigators are trying to determine how Arakawa contracted the disease. Hackman's hantavirus test came back negative.
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The couple was found in their home after local authorities conducted a welfare check and saw their bodies on the floor through a window.
Throughout his career, Hackman received two Academy Awards for "The French Connection" and "Unforgiven."
