Kendall Smoes says her father had a giant heart full of love for a lot of his family and friends. So, when her dad, James Hewitt, discovered a friend recently lost his father and needed help cleansing up his home that Hurricane Ian destroyed, he traveled 1,300 miles to go and help.
That the assistance would include a price, though, as Hewitt died days later after contracting flesh-eating bacteria in Florida waters.
Smoes said he left Grand Rapids, Michigan, and arrived in Fort Myers, Florida, on October 5.
“A friend of his needed help,” Leah DeLano, Hewitt’s fiancée, told FOX Television Stations. “This friend lost his father 10 days prior, and that father had property (house and boat) in Naples, Florida. This property suffered significant hurricane damage.”
On October 8, Hewitt was helping his friend and others clean up from Ian when he fell right into a canal and injured his leg. He was said to not have thought much of it, just cleaned the wound and continued to assist.
“He cut up his leg in some way, and that’s how the bacteria entered his body,” DeLano said.
That next day, he woke up in extreme pain and went to the hospital.
“Upon arriving on the hospital emergency department, they determined he had an infection in his blood often known as vibrio vulnificus, that’s attributable to a saltwater bacteria,” Smoes said. “Vibrio is a bacteria that has a really high mortality rate, especially in people who have weakened immune systems, like my Dad.”
DeLano told FOX that her fiancée died on October 11. She said the hospital staff was in a position to keep him alive until Smoes and her brother Joshua could come to Florida to see him.
“Jim spent tireless efforts in helping others and making friends,” DeLano said. “He had a vibrancy for all times that was unmatched and had a love for me and his family that was his primary priority.”
Hewitt’s members of the family arrange a GoFundMe to assist cover hospital bills and cremation services.
Flesh-eating bacteria cases up in Florida following Hurricane Ian
Dr. Peter Hotez joined FOX Weather to discuss Vibrio Vulnificus, a flesh-eating bacteria that’s on the rise in Florida following Hurricane Ian.
Doctors tell FOX Weather that cases of vibrio vulnificus, commonly often known as a flesh-eating bacterium, have risen since Hurricane Ian hit the Florida coast in late September and sometimes rise after catastrophic weather events.
“My colleagues and I actually have been watching very closely, the spikes in bacteria,” environmental engineer Tracy Fanara told FOX Weather Wednesday. “Vibrio vulnificus is a bacteria that we’re seeing an uptick in, similar to we saw after Hurricane Irma.”
Dr. Peter Hotez from the National School of Tropical Medicine says that the bacteria continue to exist the Gulf Coast.
“The abundance of this bacteria has been increasing over the previous few years due to two aspects,” Hotez said. “One is warming climate, but in addition due to some lower pockets of salinity within the region due to sewage dumping to coastal waterways.”
People wading in floodwaters with cuts and a few consuming shellfish are contributors to people getting these flesh-eating bacteria, doctors warn
“It’s really vital to deal with it as soon as possible throughout the first 72 hours because, after that, your possibilities should not good,” Fanara said.
Kendall Smoes says her father had a giant heart full of love for a lot of his family and friends. So, when her dad, James Hewitt, discovered a friend recently lost his father and needed help cleansing up his home that Hurricane Ian destroyed, he traveled 1,300 miles to go and help.
That the assistance would include a price, though, as Hewitt died days later after contracting flesh-eating bacteria in Florida waters.
Smoes said he left Grand Rapids, Michigan, and arrived in Fort Myers, Florida, on October 5.
“A friend of his needed help,” Leah DeLano, Hewitt’s fiancée, told FOX Television Stations. “This friend lost his father 10 days prior, and that father had property (house and boat) in Naples, Florida. This property suffered significant hurricane damage.”
On October 8, Hewitt was helping his friend and others clean up from Ian when he fell right into a canal and injured his leg. He was said to not have thought much of it, just cleaned the wound and continued to assist.
“He cut up his leg in some way, and that’s how the bacteria entered his body,” DeLano said.
That next day, he woke up in extreme pain and went to the hospital.
“Upon arriving on the hospital emergency department, they determined he had an infection in his blood often known as vibrio vulnificus, that’s attributable to a saltwater bacteria,” Smoes said. “Vibrio is a bacteria that has a really high mortality rate, especially in people who have weakened immune systems, like my Dad.”
DeLano told FOX that her fiancée died on October 11. She said the hospital staff was in a position to keep him alive until Smoes and her brother Joshua could come to Florida to see him.
“Jim spent tireless efforts in helping others and making friends,” DeLano said. “He had a vibrancy for all times that was unmatched and had a love for me and his family that was his primary priority.”
Hewitt’s members of the family arrange a GoFundMe to assist cover hospital bills and cremation services.
Flesh-eating bacteria cases up in Florida following Hurricane Ian
Dr. Peter Hotez joined FOX Weather to discuss Vibrio Vulnificus, a flesh-eating bacteria that’s on the rise in Florida following Hurricane Ian.
Doctors tell FOX Weather that cases of vibrio vulnificus, commonly often known as a flesh-eating bacterium, have risen since Hurricane Ian hit the Florida coast in late September and sometimes rise after catastrophic weather events.
“My colleagues and I actually have been watching very closely, the spikes in bacteria,” environmental engineer Tracy Fanara told FOX Weather Wednesday. “Vibrio vulnificus is a bacteria that we’re seeing an uptick in, similar to we saw after Hurricane Irma.”
Dr. Peter Hotez from the National School of Tropical Medicine says that the bacteria continue to exist the Gulf Coast.
“The abundance of this bacteria has been increasing over the previous few years due to two aspects,” Hotez said. “One is warming climate, but in addition due to some lower pockets of salinity within the region due to sewage dumping to coastal waterways.”
People wading in floodwaters with cuts and a few consuming shellfish are contributors to people getting these flesh-eating bacteria, doctors warn
“It’s really vital to deal with it as soon as possible throughout the first 72 hours because, after that, your possibilities should not good,” Fanara said.
