When 88 Colorado River rafters – including 22
experienced river guides – came down with stomach flu-like symptoms
this June, they sounded the alarm. “That’s a lot of cases in a
relatively short period of time,” says Marlene Gaither, a Coconimo
County health specialist. “When it’s 100 degrees on the river and
you vomit and have diarrhea, you can dehydrate pretty easily.” In
response, the Park Service has warned anyone using the Colorado
River this summer to avoid drinking untreated water. Gaither says
the outbreak may have been caused by a virus carried in human
waste. Although regulations require all Grand Canyon river runners
to use portable toilets, there are no guarantees everybody abides,
she says. In mid-August, when the number of cases had increased to
108, state health officials set up a small clinic on a beach deep
inside Grand Canyon. More than 400 people coming down the river
were surveyed during three days, and five who had experienced
symptoms agreed to give blood. The samples have been forwarded to
the Centers for Disease Copntrol and Prevention in Atlanta, Ga.,
for testing. Meanwhile, the number of cases has dropped off
dramatically. Says Bill Gloekner of Arizona River Runners, Inc. in
Flagstaff, “Luckily, it’s getting back to normal.”
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Flu-ing with the river.
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