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HEALTH DEPARTMENT ALERT
Health officials warn of bacteria in water after man's death
above image of the late:MrHenry “Butch” Konietzky
PALM COAST, FLA.
Henry “Butch” Konietzky cast his net into the Halifax River last Saturday as he had done for more than five decades. He never expected it would be his last time catching crabs for dinner.
The 59-year-old Palm Coast resident died Monday night after he was exposed to bacteria in the water.
“We are all still in shock,” said Konietzky's daughter Sheila Konietzky. “What's really devastating is that he fished his whole life. For something like this to take him away from us so quickly, without warning, is really scary.”
Local health officials are advising residents to avoid eating raw shellfish and exposing open wounds in seawater after Konietzky's death and two cases of the same illnesses reported in Volusia and Flagler counties in the last month. The two most recent cases are linked to open-wound exposure to the bacteria Vibrio vulnificus in the Halifax River near High Bridge Road in Ormond Beach, said Flagler Health Department Administrator Patrick Johnson. So far this year nine deaths and 26 cases have been reported statewide. In 2011, a total of 35 cases were reported in Florida.
“This is an illness that generally happens when someone eats raw oysters but that's not the case here,” Johnson said. “Because the two most recent cases are linked to the same area, we wanted to make the public aware.”
The first case in Volusia County occurred in late August after a person consumed raw oysters. An investigation, however, determined those oysters were consumed in Louisiana, said Volusia County Health Department director Dr. Bonnie Sorensen.
Vibrio vulnificus is a bacterium that normally lives in warm seawater and is in the same family as cholera. Symptoms include diarrhea, vomiting and abdominal pain. People who have compromised immune systems caused by illnesses such as liver disease or HIV/AIDS are more likely to die from the bacteria.
“We are advising residents to cook all seafood and avoid going into the water with open wounds,” Sorensen said. Sorensen also recommended wearing gloves and washing hands after handling raw shellfish.
Sheila Konietzky said that her father did not have any visible wounds before wading knee-deep in the Halifax River last week. He also did not have any other known health problems. When Konietzky noticed lesions on his leg several hours after fishing, he went to the emergency room with his wife, Patty. But the bacteria quickly spread through Konietzky's body, causing his kidneys to shut down.
“We didn't even know this type of bacteria existed,” she said. “He has been in and out of that water his entire life.”
Editor's note: So far this year nine deaths and 26 cases of exposure to the bacteria Vibrio vulnificus have been reported statewide and not as initially indicated.
~News.
Deadly bacteria in Florida waters has killed 9 so far this year
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