Brain-eating microbes found in Texas tap water, residents asked to ditch drinking that

Texas : Residents of Lake Jackson, Texas have been asked to not use tap water for consumption after brain-eating microbes were found in the water supply, which the authorities thoroughly disinfected, BBC reported.

A six-year-old boy has been reported dead after he cotracted the microbe earlier this month. According to reports, the boy, Josiah McIntryre, got infected by water of that area.

The authorities have issued an advisory where they have asked the residents to strictly not use tap water for drinking, however, the water can be used for other purposes like flushing of toilets.

Naegleria fowleri, the microscopic amoeba, can cause a deadly infection in the brain. The amoeba enters the body through nose and from there, it travels to the brain.

Josiah’s mother, Maria Castillo, said her son died at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston on 8 September, and that doctors told her the cause was the brain-eating amoeba, NBC News reported.

The prime areas in Texas which are affected by the microbe are Lake Jackson, Freeport, Angleton, Brazoria, Richwood, Oyster Creek, Clute, and Rosenberg.