Hot spring passion hitby disease outbreak

　　JAPANESE are being forced to think twice about their favorite leisure activity after contaminated water at a hot spring caused an outbreak of deadly Legionnaire’s disease that has killed six people and infected up to 272 others. All of those infected with the disease, including 22 who are in hospital, had been bathing at a spa in southern Miyazaki prefecture, engaging in a pastime enjoyed by millions of Japanese every year in the belief that it will relieve stress and benefit health. “The exact cause is still under investigation by the prefecture. Because six people have died, the police are carrying out their own investigation,” said Toshiro Atae, a spokesman for the prefecture’s health department. Checks on the water at the newly opened Sun Park Onsen (hot spring) in Hyuga Town had discovered Legionnaire’s bacteria present in levels up to 150,000 times greater than those set by the Japanese Health Ministry. The disease, which recently claimed four lives in Britain, is a form of pneumonia caused by bacteria living in water droplets. About 137 million people stay at onsens each year, according to the Japan Hot Spring Federation, not including the millions more who just pop in for a quick dip. In the few weeks since the Sun Park onsen had opened, Atae said about 20,000 customers had bathed in its waters and were now extremely worried about their health. “We’re fielding a lot of calls from worried people who used the onsen, most of them from the local area,” he said. “Other onsens in the area are being checked to see if they are following hygiene procedures, but there are a lot of them so it will be some time before we get the results.” Worryingly for Japan’s tourist industry, a recent study suggested that the Miyazaki hot spring may not be an isolated case of poor hygiene. Japan’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases said that danger may be lurking in thousands of hot springs where Health Ministry cleaning standards are not being properly followed. Its researchers found 64 percent of the 237 hot springs they tested contained amoebae, which can serve as hosts for dangerous bacteria, including the variety that carries Legionnaire’s disease. (SD-Agencies)