Florida's Vibrio vulnificus reports are now up to 31 cases and five deaths, according to the latest updateending Oct. 17 from the Florida Department of Health. The latest case was a 65-69-year-old victim in Hillsborough County, data show.
Infections from the bacteria, which can be caught by eating undercooked seafood or by exposing open wounds to brackish water where seawater and freshwater mix, have surged in southern coastal states this year, with at least 13 people killed.
Louisiana has reported 21 cases and seven deaths as of Oct. 21. South Carolina health officials told WMBF News last month they were aware of one related death. At least 24 more cases have been reported in Alabama, Mississippi, North Carolina, and Texas
Florida reported 33
cases and five deaths from the rare infection in 2025.
Vibrio vulnificus has been nicknamed “flesh-eating bacteria” because it can cause necrotizing fasciitis, a severe infection that rapidly destroys skin and muscle tissue, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Without prompt treatment, the infection can lead to tissue damage, blistering, low blood pressure, fever, organ failure, sepsis, and death.
Infections are most common from May through October, when water temperatures are at their warmest.
About 1 in 5 people who develop the infection die, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
How do you catch Vibrio vulnificus?
Most people get vibriosis, the illness caused by Vibrio vulnificus and two other Vibrio species, by eating raw or undercooked shellfish, particularly oysters. About 80,000 contract vibriosis every year in the U.S., the CDC said, and about 52,000 of them are from eating contaminated food.
Vibrio vulnificus can also enter the body when brackish water touches cuts, scrapes, or wounds.
Vibrio vulnificus cases in Florida
According to Florida Department of Health data through Oct. 10, cases have been reported in:
- Cases:
- Bay County: 2
- Brevard County: 1
- Broward County: 2
- Charlotte County: 1
- Citrus County: 1
- Clay County: 2
- Dixie County: 1
- Duval County: 1
- Franklin County: 1
- Hillsborough County: 2 (+1)
- Lee County: 2
- Marion County: 2
- Miami-Dade County: 2
- Okaloosa County: 2
- Palm Beach County: 2
- Pinellas County: 1
- Polk County: 2
- Santa Rosa County: 3
- St. Johns County: 1
- Deaths:
- Bay County: 1
- Broward County: 1
- Marion County: 1
- Palm Beach County: 1
- Pinellas County: 1
How to avoid getting infected with Vibrio vulnificus
Vibrio vulnificus enters the body through open cuts, scrapes, or wounds, or by consuming contaminated seafood that is undercooked or raw. It can become life-threatening within hours and may require emergency surgery and even rapid amputation to prevent spreading.
"Open wounds" can include small cuts and abrasions, fresh tattoos and piercings, and healing surgical incisions.
If you have an exposed wound, you should stay out of brackish water found in bays, estuaries, river mouths, and flood-prone areas or cover the area with waterproof bandages and wash exposed skin with soap and running water immediately afterward.
Cook seafood, especially oysters, thoroughly before eating. If you handle raw seafood, wash your hands and clean any surfaces the seafood touched. People at higher risk of infection should consider wearing gloves.
Who is at risk for Vibrio vulnificus infections?
Anyone can become infected, but most people with healthy immune systems fight it off without ever noticing it.
People at the highest risk of severe illness include those with liver disease, cancer, diabetes, HIV, or thalassemia, as well as people taking immune-suppressing medications, people who use acid-reducing drugs, people who recently underwent stomach surgery, and older adults with multiple underlying health issues.
What are the symptoms of Vibrio vulnificus or 'flesh-eating bacteria'?
(WARNING, AN IMAGE BELOW MAY BE TOO GRAPHIC FOR SOME AUDIENCES)
Common symptoms of Vibrio infection may include:
- Watery diarrhea, often accompanied by stomach cramping, nausea, vomiting, and fever.
- Bloodstream infection: fever, chills, dangerously low blood pressure, and blistering skin lesions.
- Wound infection, which may spread to the rest of the body: fever, redness, pain, swelling, warmth, discoloration, and discharge (leaking fluids).
If you experience these symptoms after being exposed to floodwaters, seek medical attention immediately. Healthcare professionals can treat the infection with antibiotics, but in extreme cases arms and legs may need to be amputated to remove dead or infected tissue.
"Many people with Vibrio vulnificus infection require intensive care or limb amputations," the CDC said on their site, "and about 1 in 5 people with this infection die, sometimes within a day or two of becoming ill."
C. A. Bridges is a journalist for the USA TODAY Network-Florida's service journalism Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY..
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Florida Vibrio vulnificus cases still climbing, 13 dead across South
