River Bacteria Identified in Mechanicsville Man's Death

The river bacteria that led to the death of a Mechanicsville man visiting the Rappahannock River in Essex County last weekend has been identified as Vibrio vulnificus, according to a report by the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

CBS affiliate WTVR reported earlier this month that Charlie Horner, 75, of Mechanisville, cut his leg while visiting the river and suffered an infection as a result. His leg was amputated to avoid further spread of the infection, but Horner passed away days later.

Now that the source of the river infection has been identified, state data shows Horner’s death was the first in Virginia attributed to Vibrio vulnificus in 2015. As many as 11 cases of Vibrio vulnificus were confirmed in Virginia in 2014, and eight in each of the two years prior, according to the Times-Dispatch.

“There’s no way for someone to look at the water and tell there’s Vibrio. We just have to assume it’s present in brackish or salt water,” Thomas Franck, director of the Chickahominy Health District, told the Times-Dispatch. “If they have an open wound, they really need to stay out of the water.”

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention called Vibrio vulnificus “a rare disease” that is also “underreported.” It is most common in states bordering the Gulf Coast, where 900 cases occurred between 1988-2006. The CDC did not begin monitoring the bacteria’s reach nationally until 2007.

Patch file photo