Overview

• The Carr family has retained an independent team to investigate how 12-year-old Jaysen Carr contracted Naegleria fowleri while swimming in Lake Murray.
• South Carolina authorities maintain there is no elevated amoeba risk at the reservoir despite the family’s concerns and absence of mandatory public reporting.
• The CDC’s updated recommendations stress using sterile or properly treated water for nasal rinses and implementing rigorous facility-level water treatment.
• Naegleria fowleri infections remain rare—fewer than ten U.S. cases occur annually—but carry a mortality rate above 97 percent.
• Experts warn that climate-driven warming of freshwater bodies may expand the amoeba’s habitat and increase future exposure risks.