According to an article in the Waco Tribune-Herald, BSR surf resort voluntarily closed its wavepool on Friday while the Center for Disease Control tested for Naegleria fowleri, an extremely rare and deadly single-celled organism known as the “brain-eating amoeba.” The investigation follows the tragic death of New Jersey surfer Fabrizio “Fab” Stabile, who passed away from an infection caused by the amoeba shortly after surfing BSR’s wavepool.

The CDC states that the brain-eating amoeba is found in warm freshwater, such as lakes, rivers and hot springs. In rare cases, the amoeba has been found in inadequately chlorinated swimming pools and even tap water. The amoeba is only contracted through the nose, once it enters the nose it travels to the brain where it causes primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), which is usually fatal. According to the CDC’s website, symptoms usually start one to nine days after swimming, and those infected typically die one to 18 days after the symptoms begin to show.