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In Texas, there has been a brain eating amoeba found in the water supply recently that is infecting many. It will continue if others are not aware and if the spread passes along.
Naegleria Fowleri is the name of this brain eating amoeba. This has made its appearance in late September, but has continued to spread. It has already escalated to eight cities in Texas over the past two weeks. These cities include Lake Jackson, Freeport, Angleton, Brazoria, Richwood, Oyster Creek, Clute and Rosenburg, Texas.
According to CNN, “The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality issued a water advisory to residents served by the Brazosport/Water Authority warning customers not to use any water due to the presence of Naegleria Fowleri, found in the water supply.” Also, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says, “The brain eating amoeba is commonly found in soil, warm lakes, rivers and hot springs. It can also be found in poorly maintained or non chlorinated pools and in a warm water discharge from industrial plants.”
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality urged people to avoid water going up one’s nose when bathing, showering, or swimming. They also prohibited children from playing with hoses and sprinklers. This was following the investigation of the death of six year old Josiah McIntyre in Lake Jackson, Texas, on September 8, 2020 after he contracted the brain eating amoeba. McIntyre contracted Naegleria Fowleri by playing in a water splash pad. Being that the splash pad is what causes him to contract the parasite, this required serious attention and execution.
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This made the CDC test the water. Three out of eleven samples tested positive. The splash pad had been tested and the results were positive, ending in the parking having to close. This caused the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to advise running bath and shower taps and hoses for several minutes before use and boiling tap water before drinking it.
Naegleria Fowleri can be immensely dangerous. This destroys brain tissue, then causes swelling of the brain, known as amebic meningoencephalitis. If contracted, symptoms of this parasite range from headache, fever and vomiting to loss of balance, hallucinations and infections can lead to death, normally within five days which is potentially very fatal.
Authorities were working to provide free drinking water for the residences of the city. Texas Governor Greg Abott said in a statement that the Texas Division of Emergency Management had set up a pick up location where residents could get one free case of drinking water a day.
According to USAToday, Dr. John Hellerstedt, Commissioner of the state’s Health Services Department, tried to ease any fears that the amoeba could persist in the city’s water system. He states, “The risk is vanishingly small, there’s just not going to be a chance that the water is going to contain this amoeba in the public water system after they finish the kinds of remediation efforts that they put forward.” With that being said, many Texas residents are concerned, especially because of the death of McIntyre at such a young age and it was within the first few cases. Along with dealing with COVID-19 during this pandemic, these residents have to take extra caution now with their safety.
