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Last year a parasite called cryptosporidium sickened nearly 2,000 people who swam at Utah's public pools. This year only 30 cases have been reported, and health officials are calling it a great success.
What's even more impressive about those numbers is of the reported cases this year, only eight were linked to Utah pools. And as the outdoor swimming season winds down, health officials credit teamwork which began with public awareness.
If you've flipped on the television in the past six months, surely you've seen the ads. They took a humorous approach to educate the public about the dangers of cryptosporidium. The parasite, which causes sever diarrhea, vomiting, dehydration and more, sickened about 1,900 Utahns last year. Much of the outbreak was linked to public pools.
Martin Jensen, a spokesperson for Salt Lake County Parks and Recreation, said, "Last year was a hard year for us, for people that were infected with cryptosporidium. We didn't want it to occur again."
So pool operators and the Utah Health Department teamed up.
Renee Calanan, a health department epidemiologist, said, "A lot of hard work went into this. Many things were done to avert a repeat outbreak."
Through TV ads and posting signs at public pools, they first made the public aware of the problem. The word crypto was quickly a part of swimmers' vocabulary.
Then it was technology: new ultraviolet filters were installed at most public pools. Salt Lake County invested about $1 million.
"All the pool water goes through the ultra violet light filter and is baked, anything that is in the water, bacteria, parasites," Jensen said.
But perhaps the most critical change was that swimmers adhered to the new rules. Still, health officials warn crypto is not out of the water just yet.
Calanan said, "We're definitely hopeful that we did escape an outbreak but we are keeping a close eye."
Crypto is not just a Utah problem. Cases have increased nationwide. Even after last year's outbreak, pool operators in Salt Lake County say attendance at the pools has been up.
E-mail: wjohnson@ksl.com
