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| A parasite killed a young prospect. |
He and his friend were jogging through a suburban Houston park, when he decided to go into the pond near the trail. He jumped into the water. He came out fine. But a few days later, he got very ill.
This 14 year old athlete Michael John Riley Jr. died 17 days after he contracted primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) while swimming in a freshwater lake at Huntsville State Park. Michael's family wrote on Facebook that the three-time junior Olympian "fought a courageous fight over the past week, allowing him to move on to be with the Lord for future heavenly tasks, a beautiful set of wings, and a pair of gold running shoes."
PAM is caused by the Naegleria fowleri amoeba. "They get water up their nose with those organisms in there," an epidemiologist told the Chronicle. "They start invading the nasal tissues. They basically go all the way to the brain and you get a brain infection." Experts advise against allowing warm, still water—found in lakes, ponds, and pools—to go up one's nose to decrease the chance of infection. Symptoms include headache, fever, nausea, stiff neck, and seizures, according to the CDC.
It's an unfortunate circumstance.
World News Today send our condolences to the family of Michael Riley, Jr.
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