Floridian Is Now 3rd to Die of Seawater Bacteria

But he got the infection in Mississippi
By Newser Editors,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 25, 2015 1:52 PM CDT
Floridian Is Now 3rd to Die of Seawater Bacteria
Raw shellfish can cause the infection.   (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)

At least three people in Florida have now died from a nasty warm-water bacteria called vibrio vulnificus this year, but the latest case should put people outside of Florida on alert, too. That's because the victim contracted it while on vacation in Mississippi, reports Tampa's Fox 13. Florida officials have warned people not to go swimming in the ocean with open wounds, even small cuts, and they also note that eating raw shellfish can trigger an infection.

Those unfortunate enough to get one—Florida saw 32 cases last year—can expect swelling, redness, and skin ulcers, but a Florida health official notes that vibrio is "not a flesh-eating bacteria," reports NWF Daily News. Meanwhile, WTSP talks to the mother of an apparent fourth victim, a 26-year-old man who she says got vibrio after swimming near Hernando County's Pine Island Beach. "I'm not telling anyone don't go into the water, just do your due diligence and make sure that you're not going to harm yourself," says Karen Yeager. (A woman on a "mud run" lost vision in one eye from an infection.)

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