MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — The family of a North Carolina woman believes she contracted the deadly flesh-eating bacteria after swimming in the waters off Myrtle Beach, a popular vacation destination in South Carolina.
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On Facebook on Sunday, Marsha Barnes Beal asked users to prayer for her mother, Bonita Fetterman.
“She came in contact with a life-threatening flesh-eating bacteria after putting her feet in the water at Myrtle Beach,” Beal posted.
“Surgery is the only option until it is completely cut away from her leg, with the hopes of it not spreading,” she said.
A photo with the post shows a painfully discolored and infected leg, and the victim on a gurney in the hospital.
The city of Myrtle Beach didn't know much more and could not say whether Fetterman contracted the illness at the beach.
"The city has been unable to confirm the location or date of any such incident. At this point, all we have is a Facebook post, with no confirmation," city officials said in a Facebook post of their own.
“Our ocean water quality is tested twice weekly, with excellent results. If we can determine where such contact may have occurred, we can order additional water quality tests to determine whether any connection exists,” the post said.
Fetterman's family was vacationing in Myrtle Beach last week when Fetterman cut her leg on a chair on their hotel balcony, the victim's granddaughter told WMBF News, but the cut reportedly wasn't serious enough to require medical attention.
Fetterman spent time in the water after receiving the cut, according to WMBF, and by Saturday she had a full-blown case of flesh-eating bacteria.
Marsha Barnes Beal said her mother was in stable condition Sunday in the intensive care unit after she was airlifted to UNC Medical Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
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