The St. Bernard Parish water system has tested positive for Naegleria fowleri, a rare ameba that attacks the brain, reports the Times-Picayune.  Working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH) announced that the ameba was found in four locations in the St. Bernard water system.  Testing came after the death of a child that visited St. Bernard Parish was linked to the rare parasite.

DHH sent samples for additional testing to the CDC.  After learning that chlorine levels in the water were low, St. Bernard Parish began flushing the water system with additional chlorine.  Health officials know that chlorine kills Naegleria fowleri and are flushing the system as an additional precaution against further contamination and infection.  Until chlorine reaches the recommended level, health officials are continuing these actions as well as daily monitoring.

According to CBS News, a four-year-old boy was killed by the brain-eating ameba last month and the parasite was confirmed earlier this month.  While visiting a home in the St. Bernard Parish in southeast New Orleans, the boy engaged in a popular hot weather pastime – the Slip ‘N Slide.  The toy was likely left out in the mud and water for a 12-hour period or longer.  When the fresh water sits for a long time, especially in hot weather, it can create conditions for the parasite to grow.  The parasite was also found inside the home, but health officials emphasize that these sources of the ameba are also stagnant water.

According to the New York Daily News, Naegleria fowleri is a microscopic, single-celled, living ameba.  It is commonly found in freshwater lakes, rivers, and ponds.  Exposure to the parasite does not necessarily mean infection.  In order to be infected, the parasite usually has to travel from the nose up to the brain.  The infection caused by the parasite is called primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), which is debilitating and usually fatal.

The CDC reports 128 known infected individuals in the U.S. between 1962 and 2012, with only one known survivor.  Current statistics do not include the cases that came up this year.  The CDC confirms that it is a very rare infection, with exposure only from the ameba entering the body through the nose.  There are no known cases of infection as a result of drinking contaminated water.  The infection also cannot be spread from one person to another.