Woman who 'lost a lot of her leg' to flesh-eating bacteria issues warning to people swimming in the ocean
A Florida mother is speaking out after a swim with her family turned into a life-threatening ordeal, warning others about the dangers of going in the water with even a small open wound.
Genevieve Gallagher from Pensacola, was enjoying a boat day with her family in July 2025 when she went swimming with a small cut on her leg.
Within days, she'd been rushed into emergency surgery as her body began shutting down.
She had contracted Vibrio vulnificus, a bacterium that's often called 'flesh-eating' bacteria, because of the way it destroys skin tissue around the point of infection.
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Speaking to Fox 35, Orlando, she said: "Every organ in my body began to fail. I went septic. I was intubated for six days, almost lost my life."
Vibrio vulnificus naturally occurs in warm coastal waters, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says most infections happen after people eat raw or undercooked shellfish, particularly oysters, which can concentrate the bacteria as they filter feed.
But people with open wounds, fresh tattoos or piercings are also at risk if they enter contaminated water.
What are the symptoms of Vibrio vulnificus?
Symptoms can start out looking like a stomach bug, including fever, vomiting, cramping and diarrhea.
In more severe cases, the bacteria can begin killing the skin surrounding an open wound, and the only way to stop it spreading is to surgically remove the affected tissue, which frequently results in amputation. And that's unfortunately what happened to Gallagher.
After being placed on a ventilator for six days and going into septic shock, she woke up to discover a significant portion of her lower leg was gone.
She said she "woke up and a lot of my leg was missing at the bottom.”
Her case comes as Florida grapples with a rise in infections.
The Florida Department of Health has recorded 15 cases of Vibrio vulnificus in the state so far this year, including two fatalities: a Marion County resident aged between 60 and 64, and a Brevard County resident aged between 10 and 14.
Can you get flesh-eating bacteria from swimming with a cut?
Health officials say any break in the skin, however minor, can act as an entry point for the bacteria once someone is in the water.
Gallagher is now urging people to think twice before swimming with any kind of open wound, no matter how small it might seem.
"If you have any open cuts at all, like mosquito bites that are open you've scratched. Do not shave the night before you go in the water," she said.
"Just anything. It's so serious and you can get it. You can get it. So do not take that chance [with] your life."
She added that, in hindsight, a beach day simply isn't worth the risk.
Speaking to KKTV about the long-term impact of her infection, Gallagher described the toll it's taken on her body.
"This will turn your life upside-down," she said. "I lost so much of my left leg below my kneecap; it's unbelievable the amount of trauma I've been through."
She's since dedicated herself to raising awareness of the condition, hoping her experience will stop others from unknowingly putting themselves at risk.
UNILAD has contacted the Florida Department of Health for comment.
Thomas Bamford