Overview
- The child, identified by her family as Lillian Smart of Ruston, was hospitalized in mid-August and her parents announced late Sunday that she had died after a rapidly progressing Naegleria fowleri infection.
- The Louisiana Department of Health confirmed this as the state’s first confirmed Naegleria fowleri case since 2013 and said investigators believe exposure likely occurred while she swam in Lake Claiborne.
- Health authorities and the CDC say the amoeba lives in warm freshwater and causes primary amebic meningoencephalitis when contaminated water enters the nose, with early signs including headache, fever and nausea and later severe neurological decline.
- Officials emphasize there is no routine test to screen lakes and rivers for Naegleria fowleri and recommend steps to reduce risk such as keeping the head above water, using nose clips, avoiding stirring up sediment and not using untreated water for nasal rinses.
- The infection is extremely rare—about 180 confirmed U.S. cases from 1937 through 2025—but almost always fatal, and scientists note rising water temperatures may expand the amoeba’s range while communities and officials respond with condolences and local support.