By Kim Kalunian, WPRO News
The Rhode Island Health Department announced they will reopen Spring Lake Beach in Burrillville Wednesday. The public swimming area was closed over the weekend after 92 people became ill with what has now been identified as shigella, a type of bacteria linked to gastrointestinal illness.
Rhode Island Health Director Dr. Michael Fine said roughly 2,000 people visited the beach on the Fourth of July, when the water became contaminated. Shigella is highly contagious and was likely spread in the water by a single person.
Toddlers and infants without their diapers were seen swimming in the water, though the precise source of the outbreak was not identified.
Fine said the warm temperature of the water that day likely prevented a larger outbreak of the bacteria, since shigella does not do well in hot temperatures.
Of the 92 people who fell ill, 16 were hospitalized. Stool samples from 19 people tested positive for shigella, but the bacteria was not found in the water during tests on Sunday and Monday. Water tests before the Fourth of July also came back clean, so Fine said it was likely a contamination that occurred only on the Fourth of July.
Fine said he is unsure if the public restrooms at the beach were open and operational on the holiday.
Symptoms of shigella include diarrhea, abdominal pain, fever, or vomiting, and typically last five to seven days. Although some people have been hospitalized, there have not been any severe cases, and those infected are expected to recover.
Fine said he expects a few more people to come forward with cases of shigella, and anyone who swam at the beach on July 4 and is experiencing similar symptoms should consult a doctor.
Fine said about 80 percent of the people infected were children.
