Sept. 16, 2026, 10:45 p.m. ET
A North Carolina teenager who died after contracting a uncommon mind an infection brought on by a microscopic amoeba was almost definitely uncovered via contact with a water function at a area people middle, based on state well being officers.
The teenager, recognized by his household as 17-year-old Moises Ponce Mendoza, died on Aug. 31, 4 days after well being officers reported he was critically unwell and present process remedy for the an infection. The uncommon mind an infection is brought on by Naegleria fowleri, an amoeba that’s generally present in heat freshwater.
An investigation couldn’t conclusively decide the place the teenager was uncovered, based on a report launched by the North Carolina Division of Well being and Human Providers on Sept. 15. However well being officers stated interviews and environmental testing indicated {that a} water function at El Futuro, a community-based psychological well being care middle in Durham County, was the almost definitely supply.
The water function was closed on Aug. 28 by the Durham County Division of Well being and later examined constructive for Naegleria fowleri on the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention. The water function stays closed to the general public, based on well being officers.
“NC Division of Well being and Human Providers and Durham County Public Well being knowledgeable El Futuro that testing recognized the presence of Naegleria fowleri in a water function at our inexperienced area,” the psychological well being care middle stated in a press release.
“Our hearts are damaged for the younger boy who misplaced his life and for his household,” the assertion continued. “We’re dedicated to supporting his household and our group via this devastating loss. We’ll proceed to completely cooperate with public well being officers.”
Public well being investigation hint potential publicity places
In line with the state well being division’s report, investigators interviewed relations to hint potential publicity places, together with websites the place he might have been swimming or in touch with heat freshwater.
The household advised investigators that the teenager had gone swimming with household and pals at an condominium advanced pool on Aug. 11 and Aug. 17 and had deliberate visits to 2 ponds on Aug. 5 and Aug. 6, although it was unclear whether or not he truly visited or swam within the ponds, the report states.
Throughout a follow-up interview, relations recognized one other potential publicity website at El Futuro, the place the teenager reportedly had contact with a backyard water function on Aug. 13, together with splashing water on his face, based on the report.
On Aug. 28, the Durham County Well being Division suggested El Futuro to shut the water function whereas investigators examined all potential publicity websites. The water function was subsequently drained “to make sure it might not be used,” the report states.
Well being officers described the water function as an interactive, artifical creek with a recirculating water system, a number of fountains, a play water pump, and a fireplace hydrant-style fountain. The psychological well being care middle reported that the water function was maintained via energy washing and hand-fed chlorination.
Through the inspection, investigators discovered algal development all through the creek in addition to natural materials and particles surrounding the pump system and masking the filter, based on the report. Testing later detected non-viable Naegleria fowleri DNA within the psychological well being care middle’s fountain storage tank water.
“Whereas this investigation doesn’t permit us to conclusively decide the placement of publicity, the epidemiologic, laboratory, and environmental findings counsel that the El Futuro water function was the almost definitely supply,” the report states. “The dearth of efficient disinfection, seen algal development, and detection of non-viable N. fowleri from the water function help this conclusion.”
What occurred to the North Carolina teen?
Well being officers stated the teenager initially went to an emergency room on Aug. 21 with a extreme headache that had persevered for 2 days. He returned the next day as his situation worsened and was admitted to the hospital.
“Upon hospital admission, Naegleria an infection was suspected as a result of studies of freshwater swimming publicity and neurological presentation,” the report states. Laboratory testing confirmed it was a Naegleria fowleri an infection on Aug. 26, and the teenager died on Aug. 31.
The teenager’s mom, Monica Mendoza, stated her son turned severely unwell after growing intense complications, based on a GoFundMe web page. She stated she took her son to the hospital after his signs turned extreme and the household was despatched house following a short examination.
Monica Mendoza took her son to the College of North Carolina Hospital’s emergency division the subsequent morning after his signs worsened, based on the GoFundMe web page. She stated her son was positioned in a coma as docs labored to deal with the mind an infection.
How does the brain-eating amoeba trigger an infection?
Naegleria fowleri is often present in heat freshwater, together with lakes, ponds, and rivers. Well being officers say it doesn’t trigger sickness when swallowed.
The hazard happens when contaminated water enters the nostril, permitting the amoeba to journey to the mind and trigger major amebic meningoencephalitis, or PAM, an especially uncommon however usually deadly illness, based on the CDC.
Signs sometimes start about 5 days after publicity, although they’ll seem wherever from one to 12 days later, based on the North Carolina Division of Well being and Human Providers. Early signs embody extreme headache, fever, nausea, and vomiting.
Signs can rapidly worsen, progressing to a stiff neck, seizures, and coma earlier than usually resulting in demise inside about 5 days.
“These uncommon infections often happen when it’s sizzling for extended intervals of time, which ends up in greater water temperatures and decrease water ranges,” the state well being division stated in a information launch. “Naegleria fowleri grows finest at greater temperatures as much as 115°F.”
The CDC says fewer than 10 circumstances are reported in the USA every year, and greater than 97% of people that develop the an infection die. Naegleria fowleri infections are “very uncommon, with solely 167 circumstances reported nationally between 1962 and 2024,” based on the state well being division.
The North Carolina case follows the demise of an 8-year-old lady in Louisiana, who died on Aug. 22 after contracting a Naegleria fowleri an infection. State well being officers stated she might have been uncovered whereas swimming in a Louisiana lake.
Contributing: Anthony Thompson and Melina Khan
