I went to
Miami Beach and all I got was this lousy hookworm isn't the kind of catchphrase South Florida's biggest tourist destination would want.
But weeks after media reports highlighted a parasitic problem near the city's shores, Miami Beach and
Miami-Dade Health Department officials are still trying to get a grasp on conditions contributing to a recent outbreak.
With the winter tourist season kicking off soon -- Art Basel starts in little more than a week -- Miami Beach is hoping to juggle the twin task of spreading awareness while reassuring beachgoers the hookworms aren't a widespread problem.
``The problem is that with all our dependence on tourism, on money coming in from that source, the last thing you want people to associate with our beaches is that it's a dangerous condition or a dangerous situation,'' said Vincent Conte, senior physician of the Health Department. ``That's why we're trying to get a handle on this now before it gets out of hand.''
The hookworm infections in humans are blamed mostly on feral and stray cats. Health officials say the infected cats spread microscopic hookworm larvae by defecating on pathways to the west of the beach's sand dunes.
Conte said the Health Department first learned of the problem from a WPLG-ABC10 reporter in late October. Since then, an investigation has confirmed seven hookworm infections contracted between July and September. Eight more are under investigation, including that of a 3-year-old boy who reportedly contracted the disease on the beach this month off 87th Street.
HOT SPOTS
In response to the findings, authorities say that during the last four weeks, officials with the county, health department and the city of Miami Beach have worked to identify hot spots from 40th Street to 65th, an area expanding out from an outbreak epicenter at 50th Street.
Health department and city crews have separately searched for signs of cats and droppings, sanitized areas and treated possibly infected cats -- sometimes by lacing food with medication. The nonprofit Cat Network is helping. And meetings with private condos are expected.
Conte acknowledged that other illnesses threatening South Florida -- such as dengue fever and encephalitis -- may pose a higher health risk. But the red, itchy and blistering rash that appears after a mature larva burrows between layers of the skin requires medication and can be ugly and alarming.
The Health Department has passed out hundreds of informational hookworm fliers to beachgoers, in hopes of prompting people to report infections and offer tips on avoiding the parasites: Don't walk barefoot. Stretch out on a towel, not the sand. Rinse off before heading home.
But at the same time, tourism and business representatives are trying to put the issue in perspective.
``The hope is that the media doesn't blow it out of proportion,'' said Jerry Libbin, a Miami Beach commissioner and the city's chamber of commerce president. ``We don't want this to become a situation of, `Oh my God, the sky is falling.' ''
Libbin pointed to Center for Disease Control findings that in 2002 there were 1.3 billion cases of hookworm worldwide.
``It's not a rare kind of thing,'' he said. ``It is serious, but it's being dealt with seriously.''
ANXIOUS PARENT
For Nakary Eriksson, whose 3-year-old son is among the cases being investigated by the Health Department, that may not be much comfort.
``The thought to know that your child has a living larva in his skin is horrible,'' she told Miami Herald news partner WFOR-CBS4.
Assistant City Manager Hilda Fernandez said the city began addressing the problem as soon as officials learned of infections from the Health Department.
But Fernandez emphasized that there is no proof that the hookworm larvae exist in the sands of the beach area east of the dunes where people lay their blankets and lawn chairs.
``We're out there cleaning. We're out there sanitizing, but fortunately we're seeing it's not in our sand,'' she said.
The Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau has also been brought in on meetings as authorities have recognized the potential impact to tourism, though Rolando Aedo, senior vice president of marketing for the bureau, says there is no evidence that has happened.
Reducing some of the urgency: Miami Beach's hotel hub is south of 40th Street, though some major resorts such as the Fontainebleau and Eden Roc are within the target area.
NORTH BEACH
Fernandez said the city is concentrating on the 25-block stretch in North Beach for now, but will check the rest of the city's beaches to make sure there aren't any other areas that could lead to infections.
Joe West, a Florida International University professor of hospitality management and chairman of the board of the local chapter of the
Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, said feral cats are far more prevalent among the city's residential area of the beach than the hotels to the south.
``I'd be concerned about it if it becomes widespread,'' he said. ``A couple of cases, though, doesn't worry me.''
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