Esquimalt teen on softball team dies after strep infection
The death of a 13-year-old Esquimalt girl who was suffering from an invasive streptococcal infection has sent shock waves through the Island’s softball community.
Robin Carey, who died Friday, was a rising star in the Victoria Devils Fastball Club.
“It’s shock and disbelief,” said Robin’s coach, Luc Fournier.
The Rockheights Middle School student was too sick to attend a softball practice on March 16, but was present at the next day’s practice, he said.
She and several Victoria Devils teammates then took part in the weeklong B.C. High Performance Camp in Parksville last week. Robin went home after she developed flu-like symptoms.
Fournier learned of Robin’s death in a phone call from her mother, Tracy Carey.
Island Health said the B.C. Coroners Service confirmed Robin had an invasive group A streptococcal infection at the time of her death.
The B.C. Centre for Disease Control says group A streptococcal infections usually result in mild illnesses such as strep throat or impetigo. But, in some cases, the bacteria that cause the disease invade the lungs or blood, or spread along the tissue layers around muscle.
“These infections are called invasive group A streptococcal disease and are very serious, even life-threatening,” the centre states on its website.
Public health officials say it is not necessary for all the players and parents who attended the Parksville camp to receive antibiotic treatment.
“The likelihood of spread of infection from routine social or sports contact with an ill person is low, and antibiotic treatment for people who have had this kind of exposure is not recommended,” said Dr. Dee Hoyano, a medical health officer at Island Health, in a statement.
Instead, she advised people to watch for signs of infection — including sore throat, fever or other respiratory symptoms — and seek treatment if they are feeling ill.
Hoyano said people are eligible to receive antibiotics as a preventative measure if they were in close contact with Robin over the past seven days, sharing sleeping quarters with her, living in the same home or having direct contact with vomit or saliva.
“If close contact occurred more than seven days ago, antibiotic treatment is not recommended and people should watch for signs and symptoms,” the statement said. “However, if more than a week has passed without developing symptoms, it is unlikely that you will fall ill from this exposure.”
Robin was a Grade 8 student at Rockheights Middle School and had been accepted into the softball academy at Lambrick Park Secondary School.
On the field she was a fierce and intense competitor, Fournier said. “Off the field, she had a kind heart.”
Robin’s proudest accomplishment, he said, was when she played catcher for Team Canada in the Little League Softball World Series in Portland, Oregon, in 2016 and 2017.
“Robin would appreciate it if we celebrate her life by getting back on the diamond,” he said.
Robin also played for the Hampton Little League team, which Fournier also coached.
“Robin was a force to be reckoned with behind the plate, at bat, and on one,” the Hampton Little League board of directors said in the statement. “Robin is mourned by the Hampton community and will be deeply missed by those whose lives she’s touched.”
Family member Kim Magi said Robin’s parents, Tracy and Roy, and her eight-year-old sister, Morgan, are devastated.
“Robin is a very athletic girl and I would say she was one of the healthiest people in our family,” said Magi, Tracy Carey’s cousin.
Magi said softball teams from across Canada and the U.S. have been paying tribute to Robin.
“I think that shows the kind of person Robin was and the kind of family she has and just how skilled a softball player she was,” she said.
A critical incident response team will be at Rockheights Middle School next Wednesday to offer support as students and staff return from spring break.
A memorial service is planned for April 5, 3:30 to 6 p.m., at the Les Passmore Centre, 286 Hampton Rd. in Saanich.
A fundraising page set up to support Robin’s parents had raised about $9,100 as of Wednesday night. It can be found at gofundme.com/loss-of-theirdaughter.