Officials in Arlington say a review is underway after a small child died from a rare disease contracted at a city park.
“On Sept. 5, 2021, Tarrant County Public Health and the City of Arlington were notified that a child was hospitalized at Cook Children’s Medical Center with primary amebic meningoencephalitis, a rare and often fatal infection caused by the Naegleria fowleri ameba,” a city news release says. The child died on September 11.
The Tarrant County Public Health Department began an immediate investigation that narrowed the cause to two possible sources, the child’s home or a splash pad at the Don Misenhimer Park in Arlington.
“On Sept. 24, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the presence of active N. fowleri ameba at the splash pad from water samples and determined the Arlington site was the likely source of the child’s exposure.” the news release said.
“N. fowleri infects people when water containing the ameba enters the body through the nose. This typically occurs when people go swimming or diving in warm freshwater places, such as lakes and rivers. In very rare instances, the ameba has been identified in other sources, such as inadequately chlorinated swimming pool water or heated and contaminated tap water.”
Now a city investigation is underway to figure out how the bacteria formed.
“Were there human errors? We believe that there were,” said Lemuel Randolph, Arlington deputy city manager. “Were there some mechanical, equipment issues? That’s something that we’re evaluating.”
The splash pads at all city parks were immediately shut down, Randolph said. They have remained closed, which normally happens at the end of September as the weather turns cooler and children return to school. The pads are expected to stay closed until next summer.
The investigation is expected to take a month, after which the city will determine who should get the blame and what led to the issue.
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