The Center for Disease Control and Prevention says a deadly bacterium with a 50% fatality rate worldwide had entered the U.S. Gulf Coast, prompting an endemic declaration by the government agency.
According to reports Wednesday, the CDC confirmed several cases of infection from the bacteria called Burkholderia pseudomallei, which experts say could cause lethal melioidosis if not treated.
An epidemic intelligence service officer with agency’s National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases said that the deadly bacteria is an environmental organism that lives naturally in the soil, and typically freshwater in certain areas around the world. Mostly in subtropical and tropical climates.
There are now about 160,000 cases reported annually, with 80,000 deaths.