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Man this is sad. 2 Wakeboarders have died in the Orlando, FL area in the past few weeks from amoeba infection. The latest casualty (a boy from my town) contracted the amoeba at the Nautique sponsored Orlando Watersports Complex near the airport. Although the owner of OWC denies he got it there (he must be extremely smart and know something that the medical examiner's office doesn't) but the facts speak for themselves.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/featu...1_layout<br />
Amoebas kill again
Kissimmee boy dies days after wakeboarding on Orange lake
Richard 'Chino' Almeida
Richard 'Chino' Almeida of Kissimmee, shown recently with his dog, Beethoven, succumbed Tuesday to amoebic encephalitis after falling ill during the weekend.
For the second time this summer, a Central Florida child has died from a rare brain infection that family members say he contracted while wakeboarding on a freshwater lake.
Ten-year-old Richard "Chino" Almeida of Kissimmee succumbed Tuesday to amoebic encephalitis after falling ill during the weekend.
Leonardo Diaz broke down in tears Wednesday as he described taking his stepson to the Orlando Watersports Complex on Aug. 26. Richard, a fifth-grader at Mill Creek Elementary School, was the only boy among four siblings.
- Don't swim in fresh lake water above 78 degrees farenhiet
- Don't swim to the bottom, where the amoebas are more prevalent.
- Don't get water up your nose, which is how the amoebas enter the brain.
- Avoid diving, rough-housing and any activities that are likely to force water up the nose.
- Wear nose clips.
- Stay close to the surface of the water, and swim in the deep part of a lake. Amoebas are typically found in shallow water.
- Stay out of water declared unsafe by the Health Department.
- Avoid stagnant, polluted water.
SOURCES: Local physicians, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
"I love my kids. I wouldn't take them anywhere unsafe," Diaz said, adding that the complex is the only lake Richard had been in lately.
The owner of Orlando Watersports said he doubts the child got the infection from his site, and health officials would not say Wednesday whether the location is under investigation.
The Florida Department of Health is urging people to take precautions in all warm freshwater bodies of water, breeding grounds for the potentially deadly amoebas. The same warnings were issued just a month ago, when Will Sellars, 11, of Orlando fell ill and died after wakeboarding on Lake Jessamine.
The two deaths so close together prompted Orange County Mayor Rich Crotty on Wednesday to recommend the ultimate precaution. "The safest thing you can do right now is to stay out of the water," he said at a news conference.
In addition, health officials await test results on a third possible amoebic-related death in Central Florida. But it's not clear whether the deceased had been exposed to fresh water, and more investigation is needed, said Dain Weister of the Orange County Health Department.
Freshwater lakes, streams, ponds and other bodies of water are the most common sources of the amoeba, Naegleria fowleri. If people inhale water into their noses, the organisms can get into the brain and cause an infection. The amoebas flourish when the water is more than 80 degrees.
"If you have warm water and it's a natural lake or a man-made lake, it doesn't matter; the amoeba can be in there," said Dr. Kevin Sherin, director of the Orange County Health Department.
Orlando Watersports owner Rene Hofmann said the water at the complex was tested Aug. 22, and the results came back negative for the organism.
Health officials say testing does not prove that any particular body of water is totally free of the amoebas -- just that there are no organisms in that particular sample.
As a precaution for patrons, Hofmann said the complex has ordered a large shipment of nose clips, which will be handed out free in the future.
"No matter where this happened, we feel for the family, and they're in our prayers," Hofmann said. "But we feel very strong about it, that it's very unlikely that it happened at our site."
Even so, some patrons said they will think carefully before engaging in watersports in the near future.
Peggy Doyle of Winter Haven decided that her grandson's first wakeboarding lesson Wednesday may be his last for a while.
"I'm sure he'll want to come back here, but I'll probably suggest something else," Doyle said.
After Sellars' death last month, the county posted warnings at public lakes and numerous boat ramps. But the county doesn't post at privately owned sites such as Orlando Watersports Complex. Richard's parents said there were no warning signs about amoebas when they took their children there.
The Health Department does not test routinely for the organism, nor does it close lakes that are linked to infections.
Officials say such efforts are futile because testing is inconclusive and it's impractical to close every freshwater body in the county. People need to assume that lakes hold the amoebas and take precautions, such as wearing nose clips.
"Just because you test a gallon of water and don't find amoeba doesn't mean you don't have amoeba in the other one-and-a-half-million gallons of water," said David Overfield, environmental-health director for the Orange Health Department.
On Wednesday, the family mourned Richard, whom they described as an energetic, artistic boy who dreamed of attending art school and doted on his dog, Beethoven.
In addition to his stepfather and sisters, Richard is survived by his mother, Maria Guzman. The family plans to hold a visitation from 3 to 9 p.m. today at Funeraria Porta Coeli, 2801 E. Osceola Parkway, Kissimmee.
Loved ones say they hope others will learn from their loss.
"It's sad," said Jorge Guzman, Richard's uncle. "All my nieces have been crying all night. It's hard for us. It would be hard for us to see this happen to another child."
Melissa Patterson and Josh Robbins of the Sentinel staff contributed to this report. Robyn Shelton can be reached at 407-420-5487 or rshelton@orlandosentinel.com. Kumari Kelly can be reached at 407-931-5933 or kkelly@orlandosentinel.com.
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http://www.orlandosentinel.com/featu...1_layout<br />
Amoebas kill again
Kissimmee boy dies days after wakeboarding on Orange lake
Richard 'Chino' Almeida
Richard 'Chino' Almeida of Kissimmee, shown recently with his dog, Beethoven, succumbed Tuesday to amoebic encephalitis after falling ill during the weekend.
For the second time this summer, a Central Florida child has died from a rare brain infection that family members say he contracted while wakeboarding on a freshwater lake.
Ten-year-old Richard "Chino" Almeida of Kissimmee succumbed Tuesday to amoebic encephalitis after falling ill during the weekend.
Leonardo Diaz broke down in tears Wednesday as he described taking his stepson to the Orlando Watersports Complex on Aug. 26. Richard, a fifth-grader at Mill Creek Elementary School, was the only boy among four siblings.
- Don't swim in fresh lake water above 78 degrees farenhiet
- Don't swim to the bottom, where the amoebas are more prevalent.
- Don't get water up your nose, which is how the amoebas enter the brain.
- Avoid diving, rough-housing and any activities that are likely to force water up the nose.
- Wear nose clips.
- Stay close to the surface of the water, and swim in the deep part of a lake. Amoebas are typically found in shallow water.
- Stay out of water declared unsafe by the Health Department.
- Avoid stagnant, polluted water.
SOURCES: Local physicians, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
"I love my kids. I wouldn't take them anywhere unsafe," Diaz said, adding that the complex is the only lake Richard had been in lately.
The owner of Orlando Watersports said he doubts the child got the infection from his site, and health officials would not say Wednesday whether the location is under investigation.
The Florida Department of Health is urging people to take precautions in all warm freshwater bodies of water, breeding grounds for the potentially deadly amoebas. The same warnings were issued just a month ago, when Will Sellars, 11, of Orlando fell ill and died after wakeboarding on Lake Jessamine.
The two deaths so close together prompted Orange County Mayor Rich Crotty on Wednesday to recommend the ultimate precaution. "The safest thing you can do right now is to stay out of the water," he said at a news conference.
In addition, health officials await test results on a third possible amoebic-related death in Central Florida. But it's not clear whether the deceased had been exposed to fresh water, and more investigation is needed, said Dain Weister of the Orange County Health Department.
Freshwater lakes, streams, ponds and other bodies of water are the most common sources of the amoeba, Naegleria fowleri. If people inhale water into their noses, the organisms can get into the brain and cause an infection. The amoebas flourish when the water is more than 80 degrees.
"If you have warm water and it's a natural lake or a man-made lake, it doesn't matter; the amoeba can be in there," said Dr. Kevin Sherin, director of the Orange County Health Department.
Orlando Watersports owner Rene Hofmann said the water at the complex was tested Aug. 22, and the results came back negative for the organism.
Health officials say testing does not prove that any particular body of water is totally free of the amoebas -- just that there are no organisms in that particular sample.
As a precaution for patrons, Hofmann said the complex has ordered a large shipment of nose clips, which will be handed out free in the future.
"No matter where this happened, we feel for the family, and they're in our prayers," Hofmann said. "But we feel very strong about it, that it's very unlikely that it happened at our site."
Even so, some patrons said they will think carefully before engaging in watersports in the near future.
Peggy Doyle of Winter Haven decided that her grandson's first wakeboarding lesson Wednesday may be his last for a while.
"I'm sure he'll want to come back here, but I'll probably suggest something else," Doyle said.
After Sellars' death last month, the county posted warnings at public lakes and numerous boat ramps. But the county doesn't post at privately owned sites such as Orlando Watersports Complex. Richard's parents said there were no warning signs about amoebas when they took their children there.
The Health Department does not test routinely for the organism, nor does it close lakes that are linked to infections.
Officials say such efforts are futile because testing is inconclusive and it's impractical to close every freshwater body in the county. People need to assume that lakes hold the amoebas and take precautions, such as wearing nose clips.
"Just because you test a gallon of water and don't find amoeba doesn't mean you don't have amoeba in the other one-and-a-half-million gallons of water," said David Overfield, environmental-health director for the Orange Health Department.
On Wednesday, the family mourned Richard, whom they described as an energetic, artistic boy who dreamed of attending art school and doted on his dog, Beethoven.
In addition to his stepfather and sisters, Richard is survived by his mother, Maria Guzman. The family plans to hold a visitation from 3 to 9 p.m. today at Funeraria Porta Coeli, 2801 E. Osceola Parkway, Kissimmee.
Loved ones say they hope others will learn from their loss.
"It's sad," said Jorge Guzman, Richard's uncle. "All my nieces have been crying all night. It's hard for us. It would be hard for us to see this happen to another child."
Melissa Patterson and Josh Robbins of the Sentinel staff contributed to this report. Robyn Shelton can be reached at 407-420-5487 or rshelton@orlandosentinel.com. Kumari Kelly can be reached at 407-931-5933 or kkelly@orlandosentinel.com.
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