(CNN) - Cases of flesh-eating bacteria are on the rise.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the potentially deadly bacteria thrive in coastal waters during warmer months, especially in brackish waters, where fresh water meets the sea.

You can get the Vibrio vulnificus infection when contaminated water enters the body through an open cut or skin wound.

You can also get it by eating contaminated raw or undercooked seafood.

Cases of flesh-eating bacteria were once largely confined to the Gulf Coast, but the CDC said cases from 1988 to 2018 surged along the East Coast with an 800% increase.

The risk for Vibrio infections has also spread farther north as water temperatures have increased due to climate change.

According to the CDC, about 1 in 5 people with th

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