Whitewater center reopens 2 months after rafter’s death

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — State and local elected officials have expressed concerns that the U.S. National Whitewater Center has reopened its channels less than two months after a rafter died from a braineating amoeba and with no new regulations in place.

The Charlotte Observer reported that State Sen. Joel Ford said he was “stunned” that the center resumed rafting on Aug. 10. Ford, whose district includes the facility, also said state lawmakers had expected to reconvene in Ra- leigh this winter and consider new requirements. Ford also told the newspaper that lawmakers believed the water channels would remain closed until next year and thus didn’t act immediately.

The center closed after 18-year-old Lauren Seitz of Westerville, Ohio, died on June 19 from an infection caused by an amoeba naturally present in warm fresh water.

Ford, state Rep. Bill Brawley, a Republican who sponsored the proposed requirements, and two members of Mecklenburg County’s Board of Com- missioners all said they were surprised by how quickly the center resumed water activities.

Some officials said they were under the impression that the engineering and operating modifications suggested by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would take much longer.

“They are exploiting a loophole at the public’s expense,” Ford said.

“Are profits more important than protecting and preserving life? What’s there to ensure you won’t make the same mistake again?”