Woman asking for prayers, says mother contracted flesh-eating bacteria at Myrtle Beach

CHAPEL HILL, North Carolina -- A Lumberton woman has taken to Facebook asking for prayers, claiming her mother contracted flesh-eating bacteria at Myrtle Beach.

ABC11 has not been able to confirm the case of flesh-eating bacteria, or if there is a link between the victim's ailment and waters at Myrtle Beach.

The victim's daughter's Facebook post has been shared over 45,000 times.

She wrote the following on Facebook:

"All prayer warriors: Please remember my Mama ------ in prayer. She was airlifted to Chapel Hill earlier today. She's now in ICU, heavily sedated, and on a breathing machine. However, she is stable! She came in contact with a life threating flesh eating bacteria after putting her feet in the water at Myrtle Beach! Surgery is the only option until it is completely cut away from her long! With the hopes of it not spreading. She is in need of special prayer!"

ABC11 has redacted the victim's name at the request of the family.

The victim's granddaughter tells ABC11 in a phone interview that her grandmother was taken to Southeastern Regional Medical Center on Saturday and airlifted to UNC Hospitals.

She said her grandmother lost control of her blood pressure, the blisters on her leg growing worse.

The granddaughter said it happened after her grandmother scraped her leg on a chair on her hotel balcony, then got into the water later that day at Myrtle Beach near the boardwalk, between 27th and 23rd street.

ABC11 reached out to the City of Myrtle Beach. Public information director Mark Kruea said the city tests the water twice a week and has received "excellent results," and "no complaints or concerns."

Kruea tells ABC11 they have reached out to the family for more information around the time and place and details surrounding the victim's whereabouts at Myrtle beach, but are "not clear" on that information.

ABC11 is a sister station of ABC13/KTRK.

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