A brain-eating amoeba kills Eddie Gray after visiting North Carolina Water Park

Eddie Gray loved his grandchildren. He loved NASCAR. And he loved being at the water's edge to find the time to kayak and fish in summer in North Carolina.

He was also a devout man who devoted time to many activities with his Methodist Church, including a missionary trip to Fantasy Lake Water Park on July 12th.

Gray, 59, was in the water when he met Naegleria fowleri, a unicellular organism better known as the brain-thirsty amoeba, health officials said in a statement. He died 10 days later, Monday, after contracting a disease caused by the amoeba.

A fatal but rare infection with N. fowleri, which occurs naturally in fresh water, is caused by a series of tri – fold events. The temperature of the simmering water, the low levels of water and the water flowing through the nostril conspire to throw the amoeba to the brain.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 145 infections were reported in the United States from 1962 to 2018. All but four cases were fatal. A 16-year-old Florida resident defied all odds and survived the infection in 2016.

But Gray does not have it.

[This brain-eating amoeba kills 97 percent of the people it infects. Not Sebastian DeLeon.]

His death was tragic and premature, said Justin Plummer, a lawyer representing his estate, in a statement asking to respect the privacy of the family.

The infection attacks the central nervous system, triggering a series of symptoms such as fever, vomiting and, later, hallucinations, coma and distinctive sign of a stiff neck.

But the detection of the disease is notoriously difficult, the CDC said, as it progresses very quickly, with signs just starting a few days after contact. A diagnosis is often made after death.

Health officials said that the amoeba could not be contaminated by drinking water and did not live in salt water.

Five infections occurred in North Carolina, the state said.

"People need to know that this organism is present in lakes, rivers and hot springs in North Carolina. So be careful when you swim or practice water sports, "state epidemiologist Zack Moore said.

The statement included other tips, such as using nasal forceps in water, keeping the head above the surface and refraining from stirring sediments in shallow waters, but it is noted "There is no way to remove this amoeba from freshwater lakes."

Fantasy Lake Water Park, which is centered on an artificial lake, did not return a request for comment. On the homepage of its website, the park has issued a notice detailing the rare risks associated with the amoeba, although the date of publication of this notice is unclear. The park did not carry such a warning on its page last summer, according to an archived page.

Gray is survived by his wife Beverly, his daughter and two grandchildren, and other family members, aged 32 and over, his obituary.

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