Twenty-nine Vibrio infections have been recorded in Mississippi since Aug. 7, including three Vibrio vulnificus cases, prompting the state health department to warn Gulf Coast residents and visitors.
Eighteen cases were reported in coastal District 9, and officials urged people with open wounds to avoid brackish or salt water and to avoid raw or undercooked shellfish.
Mississippi has reported no Vibrio vulnificus deaths this year, compared with five deaths in Louisiana and two in Florida; the CDC says about 1 in 5 infected people die.
Vibrio occurs naturally in warm brackish coastal water, especially from May to October, and Mississippi does not run a daily geographic monitoring program or close beaches specifically for it.