Judge orders entire town to stay indoors

An Argentine judge has ordered 85 residents of a remote Patagonian town to stay in their homes for at least 30 days, to help halt an outbreak of hantavirus in which nine people have died.

The order affects people in Epuyen who have been in contact with people who tested positive for the virus. Some people in the town of 3000 had resisted calls for voluntary isolation.

Town officials have suspended gatherings in municipal facilities, including funerals.

At least 26 people in the region have fallen ill from hantavirus since early December. Argentina has reported 111 deaths from the virus since 2013.