Splash Park in Opelika, Alabama May be Source of E. coli Outbreak
At least four children may have been sickened by contaminated water at the Splash Park at the Opelika Sportsplex and Aquatic Center. Dr. Mary McIntyre, medical officer of the Bureau of Communicable Disease, said, “Based on what we know now, four children who were in the Splash Park between June 12 and June 18 have been hospitalized at East Alabama Medical Center with gastrointestinal illness.” Two of the children have tested positive for E. coli.
"Proper pool maintenance prevents E. coli outbreaks," said E. coli attorney Fred Pritzker. "If the Splash Park is the source of this outbreak, the city should be held accountable. These four children suffered severe pain, and their parents have medical bills to pay and have lost time from work."
The health department’s Bureau of Clinical Laboratories is conducting tests on water samples and specimens from the affected children, and two children have been found positive for E. coli infection. At this time it appears that the common exposure is the Splash Pool at the Opelika Sportsplex and Aquatic Center. This common exposure may be sufficient to prove that the Splash Pool was the source of the outbreak, even if the water samples come back negative.
E. coli infections can cause hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), the leading cause of kidney failure in children in the United States. Even in cases where a child does not develop HUS, the child is at greater risk of future kidney problems because of the E. coli infection.
