19 members of Kashechewan First Nation in northern Ontario test positive for cryptosporidium

Officials in Kashechewan First Nation have confirmed 19 people from the community have tested positive for a parasite called cryptosporidium.

The parasite causes gastrointestinal symptoms, such as diarrhea and stomach pain, and normally resolves itself on its own with proper rest and hydration. Antimicrobial treatment may be needed for immunocompromised people, young infants and seniors.

In an email to CBC News, Indigenous Services Canada said public health officials — with Ontario public health, and Northeastern Public Health Unit — are working to determine the cause of the illness.

“There are still a lot of things that need to be tested to find out where that parasite is coming from,” Tyson Wesley, Kashechewan’s executive director, told CBC’s Metro Morning.

Cryptosporidium can be found in contaminated soil, feces and lake water. People can become infected when they consume water or food that has been contaminated with infected feces, or through direct contact with someone who is sick.

On Jan. 4, Kashechewan Chief Hosea Wesley declared a state of emergency after the water treatment plant stopped working due to defective pumps.

Evacuations have been ongoing because of a lack of access to clean drinking water. Repairs at the plant are underway, but officials are waiting for testing results to make sure the water is safe to drink.

Indigenous Services Canada said, however, the source of the cryptosporidium contamination remains unknown.

The department said E. coli hasn’t been detected in samples from the water treatment plant. The bacteria also hasn’t been found in stool samples from patients who have reported gastrointestinal issues.

In 2005 flooding in the community affected the local drinking water, which tested positive for E. coli at that time.

“There was funds distributed to us to maintain that water plant, but that was 20 years ago,” said Tyson Wesley.

“We don’t have any redundancies in that system and we’re a population that’s getting bigger. I think it would have been nice to get a new water plant going.”

The community is located in a flood plain and is evacuated every spring due to that risk.

Wesley said long-term investments, such as a new water treatment plant, are made more challenging because of long-standing discussions to move the community 30 kilometres north, to higher ground.