Tests of Lake Anna show that the water meets benchmarks for safe swimming, Virginia public health officials said Friday, after at least 25 people were diagnosed with E. coli infections following visits last month to the popular recreation spot.
Results of samples collected this week show that “all fecal bacteria concentrations were well below a public health level of concern,” officials said in a news release Friday evening. They also said there is no indication that contaminated food caused the illnesses.
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How to prevent illness when visiting a lake
Swimming or boating in natural waters? Experts offer this advice:
- Never drink untreated water or swim with cuts or open wounds. Natural waters such as rivers, lakes, and oceans have germs and contaminants, which can cause illness.
- Wash hands after using the bathroom and before preparing and eating food.
- Avoid swimming if you are vomiting or have diarrhea.
- Avoid going in water if there is a green film on the water and keep pets out as well. This may indicate an algal bloom and some algae produce toxins that can make people sick.
- Shower or bathe after swimming to wash off possible germs and contaminants.
- Avoid swimming for three days after a heavy rain. Germs can come from overflowing sewage, polluted stormwater and runoff from land.
- Properly dispose of human waste by discharging boat sewage at marinas with a pump-out unit or dump station.
Source: Virginia Department of Health
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Officials said they may never be able to identify the source of the outbreak.
Environmental pollutants from “heavy rains, livestock, failing septic systems, boating discharge, and swimmers” are potential sources of illness in waters like Lake Anna, officials said in the statement, cautioning against swimming where livestock are present.
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The statement said 25 people, mostly minors, were infected — an increase of five cases since Tuesday. Five children were hospitalized with hemolytic uremic syndrome, a serious complication of an E.coli infection often treated with blood transfusions and dialysis.
Parents of sick children are still clamoring for answers, including Judy Inglett, whose 15-year-old daughter, Ava, was discharged Friday after 10 days in a hospital.
“Somebody needs to be accountable for this,” Judy Inglett said.
Escherichia coli, commonly known as E. coli, infections spread through water or food contaminated by animal or human feces, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Symptoms of an infection from a harmful strain of E.coli include stomach cramps, diarrhea that is often watery or bloody, vomiting, fever, and chills.
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The heath department created a website on the outbreak with updates about the ongoing investigation and guidance directing health-care providers to maintain a low threshold for testing in anyone with diarrhea who was at Lake Anna on or after Memorial Day. They should contact their local health department to arrange for testing through the state lab, officials said.
Officials reiterated calls to use regular safety precautions when swimming in lakes. Never drink untreated water or swim with open cuts; avoid swimming if you have vomiting or diarrhea; shower after swimming to wash off any germs; and wash hands often, especially after using the bathroom and before preparing or eating food, public health officials said.
Children under the age of 5, the elderly and people with underlying health conditions are at higher risk of contracting illness from open waters, which are likely to have bacteria present because it is not disinfected like pool water would be.
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“It should be noted that exposure to any natural water, including swallowing untreated water or swimming with open wounds, represents a possible health risk, even when sample results indicate the water is ‘safe’ for swimming,” the health department’s website says.
Staff from the Department of Environmental Quality on Tuesday collected six samples from three areas at the lake to test for concentrations of E. coli. Samples were taken from the sandbar near the confluence of Goldmine Creek, water adjacent to the state park and the co*cktail Cove sandbar.
An additional round of testing was added, and samples will be collected Monday and again on June 25, health department spokesman Larry Hill said.
Many who fell ill recently reported wading in the waist-deep water at the sandbar, which can become crowded during summer weekends and holidays.
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Lake Anna State Park includes about 10 miles of shoreline along Lake Anna, a 13,000-acre reservoir in the center of a triangle formed by Charlottesville, Fredericksburg and Richmond.
The 15-mile-long reservoir was created in the early 1970s by the company that is now Dominion Energy to provide recreation and a cooling pond for the North Anna Power Station, a nuclear plant.
The cool side spans about 9,400 acres and is open to the public, while the warm or private side, including the waste heat treatment facility, spans about 3,400 acres, according to the Lake Anna Civic Association.
The sprawling lake, bordered by Louisa County to the south, Orange County to the northwest and Spotsylvania to the north, has been known for harmful algae blooms, but officials say algae activity has been normal for this time of year and is unrelated to the latest spate of E.coli infections.
