A bar shot of raw oysters at a restaurant in Rhode Island.
A University of Maryland graduate student shows frozen cultures of Vibrio vulnificus.

Another two people are dead and at least 22 more have been hospitalized because of a flesh-eating bacteria in Louisiana, state health officials confirmed.

The reports involved Vibrio vulnificus bacteria, which is found in saltwater and brackish water as well as raw or undercooked seafood. This batch of infections brought the state's death count from the bacteria to four so far this year, Louisiana Department of Health (DOH) Communications Director Emma Herrock told USA TODAY on Friday, Aug. 28.

Jennifer Armentor, the DOH's molluscan shellfish program administrator, announced the most recent deaths at the Louisiana Oyster Task Force meeting on Aug. 26. She said two people died after eating raw oysters.

As of Aug. 28, at least 22 other people in Louisiana had contracted the bacteria, according to Herrock.

Vibrio vulnificus data is collected by a DOH epidemiologist, who is responsible for tracking reportable infectious diseases.

The most recent data, Herrock said, includes all illnesses caused by the bacteria − both infections related to seafood consumption and wound infections contracted during contact with water.

The bacterium naturally occurs in warm coastal waters, often between May and October, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

How many people have died from Vibrio vulnificus in LA?

The current 2025 counts for Vibrio vulnificus infections among Louisiana residents are:

  • Cases: 22 (all hospitalized), with more than 80% reported after wound/seawater exposure
  • Deaths: 4

In late July, the state DOH issued a statement alerting residents to take precautions to prevent infections.

Who died after eating raw oysters?

State officials reported the decedents included a Louisiana resident and someone from out of state.

Their ages and sex were not released.

What is Vibrio vulnificus?

Vibrios are bacteria that live in coastal waters, according to the CDC. Some Vibrio species can cause severe and life-threatening infections, although they are rare compared to the number of people likely exposed, according to the CDC. Vibrio vulnificus "has the highest fatality rate of any foodborne pathogen and causes over 95% of seafood-related deaths in the US," according a research summary published in the Delaware Journal of Public Health.

Nearly 80,000 people get vibrio infections each year, mostly as a result of eating contaminated food. Of the roughly 500 people hospitalized each year in the United States, about 100 die, the CDC says.

Why is it called 'flesh-eating' bacteria?

Vibrio vulnificus kills body tissues, but does not eat it. The bacteria cannot penetrate unharmed skin, but can enter through an existing break in it. If the bacteria enter the body through a cut or wound, it can cause necrotizing fasciitis, which prompts the flesh around the infection site to die.

The infected may need intensive care or limb amputations, according to the CDC. About one-in-five people who get the infection and need hospitalization ultimately die, sometimes within 24 hours of becoming sick.

Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 2 dead, 22 hospitalized after contracting flesh-eating bacteria: See where

Reporting by Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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