--- title: Hally Yust, 9, Killed by Brain-Eating Parasite in Kansas description: Kansas and Florida officials issue health warnings about swimming in fresh water canonical: https://time.com/2991407/brain-eating-amoeba-kansas-freshwater/ author: Mirren Gidda article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-07-16T12:18:38.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-21T09:10:20.535Z article:section: Health og:title: Hally Yust, 9, Killed by Brain-Eating Parasite in Kansas og:description: Kansas and Florida officials issue health warnings about swimming in fresh water og:url: https://time.com/2991407/brain-eating-amoeba-kansas-freshwater/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltda7e77107da0b964/69869be306f2c11ea032fe91/naegleria-fowleri.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: This photomicrograph of a brain tissue specimen depicts the cytoarchitectural changes associated with a free-living, Naegleria fowleri, amebic infection. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Hally Yust, 9, Killed by Brain-Eating Parasite in Kansas twitter:description: Kansas and Florida officials issue health warnings about swimming in fresh water twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltda7e77107da0b964/69869be306f2c11ea032fe91/naegleria-fowleri.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Girl, 9, Killed by Brain-Eating Parasite in Water by [Mirren Gidda](https://time.com/author/mirren-gidda/) ## Mirren Gidda Jul 16, 2014 12:18 PM UTC  This photomicrograph of a brain tissue specimen depicts the cytoarchitectural changes associated with a free-living, Naegleria fowleri, amebic infection. This photomicrograph of a brain tissue specimen depicts the cytoarchitectural changes associated with a free-living, Naegleria fowleri, amebic infection.Getty Images by [Mirren Gidda](https://time.com/author/mirren-gidda/) ## Mirren Gidda Jul 16, 2014 12:18 PM UTC Kansas health and environment officials have [issued](http://www.kdheks.gov/news/web%5Farchives/2014/07112014.htm) a health warning after a 9-year-old girl died from a brain-eating amoeba that lives in fresh water. Hally Yust is [reported](http://edition.cnn.com/2014/07/15/health/brain-eating-amoeba/) to have been a regular water-skier who frequently swam in freshwater areas. She died last week after encountering the parasite _Naegleria fowleri_ which is found in warm, still water. Florida officials have [provided](http://newsroom.doh.state.fl.us/wp-content/uploads/newsroom/2014/06/06.04.14Naegleria-Fowleri.pdf) similar warnings following Yust’s death. Last summer Florida resident Zachary Reyna, 12, died after he picked up the parasite while playing in a ditch near his home. The Department of Health and Environment in Kansas said that it’s not clear where Yust, a resident of Johnson County, contracted the parasite. This is the second such case in Kansas. “We are very saddened to learn of this unfortunate circumstance, and our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends during this difficult time,” said Robert Moser, Department Secretary and State Health Officer. He added: “It is important for the public to know that infections like these are extremely rare and there are precautions one can take to lower their risk – such as nose plugs.” From 1962 to 2013 there have been 132 similar cases reported in the U.S. The infection usually happens when the amoeba enters a person’s nose whilst they’re underwater and travels to the brain. Symptoms usually appear five days after exposure. Officials recommend keeping your head above water when swimming in warm freshwater, wearing nose clips or avoiding freshwater activities altogether. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2991407/brain-eating-amoeba-kansas-freshwater/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2991407/brain-eating-amoeba-kansas-freshwater/"},"headline":"Girl, 9, Killed by Brain-Eating Parasite in Water","datePublished":"2014-07-16T12:18:38.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T09:10:20.535Z","description":"Kansas and Florida officials issue health warnings about swimming in fresh water","url":"https://time.com/2991407/brain-eating-amoeba-kansas-freshwater/","keywords":["Infectious Disease"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltda7e77107da0b964/69869be306f2c11ea032fe91/naegleria-fowleri.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Mirren Gidda","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/mirren-gidda/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltda7e77107da0b964/69869be306f2c11ea032fe91/naegleria-fowleri.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"This photomicrograph of a brain tissue specimen depicts the cytoarchitectural changes associated with a free-living, Naegleria fowleri, amebic infection.","caption":"This photomicrograph of a brain tissue specimen depicts the cytoarchitectural changes associated with a free-living, Naegleria fowleri, amebic infection.","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/infectious-disease/","name":"Infectious Disease"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2991407/brain-eating-amoeba-kansas-freshwater/","name":"Girl, 9, Killed by Brain-Eating Parasite in Water"}}]}] ```