A rare bacteria normally found on Gulf Coast beaches has showed up in Rhode Island waters. The bacteria, which can cause infections and nausea and diarrhea in most people, is life-threatening to those with underlying illnesses such as liver disease, AIDS, cancer, diabetes and blood disorders. The Vibrio vulnificus bacteria has never been in Rhode Island waters before, according to David R. Gifford, director of the state Department of Health.
His department yesterday suggested that Rhode Islanders avoid exposing open wounds to saltwater and avoid eating raw or undercooked shellfish. (The shellfish advisory is always in effect, Gifford said, because of the potential dangers of eating raw shellfish.) Of particular concern to the state are the warmer waters of the upper Bay -- from Greenwich Bay north to Providence -- and inlets, shallow areas and coastal ponds such as Ninigret Pond and the Great Salt Ponds.
Gifford said the bacteria needs warm saltwater to survive, but he would not rule out the possibility of its presence in cooler parts of the Bay or in the ocean. Nationally, there are about 100 cases of Vibrio infection a year, a third of which are fatal, Gifford said.
In the last five years, Gifford said, there have been only two reported cases of the bacteria in Rhode Island. Both were in people who ate shellfish in other states -- Maryland and Connecticut -- and then became ill after they returned to Rhode Island. The latest case is different. Gifford said a man in his 50s or 60s was collecting shellfish near Warwick's Conimicut Point early last month. A wound on his leg became infected, leading to a serious hospitalization. The man is now recovering, Gifford said. He refused to release more information, saying he did not want to jeopardize the man's privacy.
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