Local Teen Apparently Contracted Rare Infection At North Carolina Facility

The Westerville teen who died last weekend from a rare virus she contracted while swimming apparently became infected at the U.S. National Whitewater Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. The center has released a statement saying its man-made, closed-loop system of concrete channels and rapids uses only filtered and treated municipal water and water from two on-site wells.  The center says it adds chlorine to the system, which filters 12 million gallons a day, and treats the water with enough ultraviolet radiation to "inactiviate" the type of amoeba responsible for the death. The center said the radiation has an effectiveness of 99.99 percent. 18-year-old Lauren Seitz died Sunday after earlier visiting the center with a church group. She contracted primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, which is typically found in warm bodies of freshwater such as rivers and lakes and enters the human body through the nose.