Researchers testing floodwater samples collected after Hurricane Harvey discovered the presence of bacteria with antibiotic-resistant genes, according to a study published in Environmental Science & Technology Letters.
Lead researcher Lauren Stadler, PhD, assistant professor in the department of civil environmental engineering at Houston-based Rice University, and her team examined microbial communities in samples collected from floodwaters both inside and outside of flooded homes, bayou water and residual bayou sediment present after the flooding subsided in Houston.
They found elevated levels of E. coli in the samples. The bacteria also contained high amounts of two indicator genes tied to antibiotic resistance, even when water was tested weeks after the floodwater
The samples showed the antibiotic-resistant bacteria were more abundant in indoor floodwaters than in the street floodwaters or bayou water. There was also an increase in the antibiotic-resistant pathogenic bacteria in residential areas and public parks after the flooding.
"That matters because while we see these genes in environmental bacteria all the time, we really worry when pathogenic bacteria acquire resistant genes from environmental bacteria," Dr. Stadler told Science Daily. "That's when there's an issue -- when there's an antibiotic-resistant pathogen. If you're exposed to one of those, that's when you see infections that are really hard to treat."
She said people should avoid direct contact with stagnant floodwaters found in homes.
"Wear protective gear, and don't go in at all if you're immunocompromised or have open wounds," she told Science Daily.
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