Health Department warns of Impetigo outbreak on St. Croix

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Health Department warns of Impetigo outbreak on St. Croix

BY ASHLEY MAYRIANNE JONES (DAILY NEWS STAFF)
Published: October 22, 2015

On his first day as Acting Health Commissioner, Juan Figueroa-Serville issued an island-wide health alert Wednesday about an outbreak of impetigo on St. Croix and warned schools and families to take caution and monitor their children for signs of the highly contagious rash.

According to Health spokeswoman Astia LeBron, there have been about 30 suspected cases reported so far, affecting two schools on St. Croix. The reported cases have not been restricted to infants and children, she said.

The Environmental Health Division is continuing to monitor the cases, and the Health Department will be issuing further releases to keep the public updated, LeBron said.

Impetigo is a bacterial skin rash affecting primarily infants and children, manifesting as red sores on the face, nose and mouth.
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http://virginislandsdailynews.com/n...ns-of-impetigo-outbreak-on-st-croix-1.1961460

 

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Local news ? St. Croix

WAPA CEO: Water and Impetigo Outbreak Unrelated

BY LAUREN BACCUS ? OCTOBER 23, 2015

V.I. Water and Power Authority Executive Director Hugo Hodge Jr., denied Friday that the recent outbreak of impetigo is related to the public water system.

?For the record we have nothing to do with it, it has nothing to do with the water,? Hodge said during a board meeting Friday.

While acknowledging reports of ?discoloration,? Hodge affirmed that daily tests of the water from multiple locations have shown that there are no contaminants in the water running through the lines.

?There?s no discoloration of what?s coming out of the units when it?s produced,? he clarified. ?It?s all the rust in the lines.?
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http://stcroixsource.com/content/ne...apa-ceo-water-and-impetigo-outbreak-unrelated