Flesh Eating Bacteria found in the U.S.

During the devastating hurricane Ian in October 2022, there were fire, winds, tornados, you name it. It seemed like natural disasters had peaked. However, what most people don’t know is that the biggest threat during that time wasn’t all the natural disasters, it was something that the naked eye cannot even see. 

Florida was also hit with Vibrio vulnificus—more popularly known as the flesh-eating bacteria. This bacterium works exactly the way you would expect it to and much worse. It feeds off of you by breaking down the red blood cells and stealing your iron supply. They also use their enzymes to break down the human soft tissue to get to the amino acids they require to survive. 

In many ways, Vibrio vulnificus works in a similar manner to the bacteria that causes cholera. In fact, they are known as sibling bacteria. Cholera is typically transmitted through contaminated food and water but can also make its way into your body through undetectable amounts of fecal matter and open wounds. This is exactly how Vibrio vulnificus functions and it is far more dangerous than cholera. 

While boiling our water and cooking our food thoroughly does help, stats show that the most infected places are usually kitchen preparation stations, bathrooms, and the side of your bed. Since this bacteria is not visible to the eye, it can spread easily. Yes, bleach and disinfectants work great in ridding it, but, simply put—it is next to impossible to cover every square inch of a surface. You would need to spend a significant amount of time doing so every single day or even clean every few hours. 

Right now, West Florida’s Lee county accounts for 29 cases from the recent tragedy of hurricane Ian. The cases and the death toll are even higher in the whole state with 60+ cases of Vibrio vulnificus and 11 deaths as of 19th October 2022, making it the state’s highest death toll from the bacteria since hurricane Irma in 2017 which had 50 cases and claimed 11 lives. 

One of the reasons attributed to the significant rise in cases is that sewage water leaked into the flood water during both storms. To understand how dangerous and ruthless this bacteria is, the stats show that many of the people who contracted it needed to get amputations to eradicate the dead tissues with several dying within two days of contraction. The official death rate stands at 1 in 5 with most patients requiring intensive care treatment.