A 29-year-old New Jersey man who had recently visited a Texas surf resort died after contracting what is commonly known as a “brain-eating amoeba.”
Doctors diagnosed Fabrizio Stabile with Naegleria fowleri after he visited BSR Cable Park’s surf resort in Waco. The rare, devastating infection usually occurs in warm, fresh water, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“The CDC collected water samples and are currently investigating to find the source,” Kelly Craine, a Waco-McLennan County Public Health District spokesperson, told KBTX Sunday. “We hope to have results by the end of the week.”
Stabile noticed something was wrong Sept. 16 while mowing the lawn when a painful headache forced him to lie down. The next morning the sharp pain had still not gone away and his mother called 911, according to a GoFundMe account.
Doctors at the Atlantic City Medical Center were unable to save Stabile, who died Sept. 21.
Stabile was an avid outdoorsman who loved snowboarding, surfing, and anything to do with friends and family, according to an obituary published by The Press of Atlantic City.
“Our hearts and prayers are with his family, friends, and the New Jersey surf community during this difficult time,” the owner of BSR Cable Park, Stuart Parsons, told the Waco Tribune-Herald. “BSR Surf Resort operates a state of the art artificial man-made wave. We are in compliance with the CDC guidelines and recommendations concerning Naegleria fowleri.”
The park remains closed pending the findings of the CDC.