Q: With all the inspiring stories about Aimee Copeland’s recovery, I don’t recall reading which strain of bacteria caused her necrotizing fasciitis. Does anyone have any idea what it was?
—Carol Cooper, Gainesville
A: The city of Carrollton tested the water in the Little Tallapoosa River for the Aeromonas hydrophila bacteria after it was confirmed it was the source of the necrotizing fasciitis.
The AJC reported in May 2012, three weeks after Copeland contracted the infection, that the bacteria was “present in normal levels” in the river.
Copeland, a West Georgia graduate student from Snellville, cut her calf on rocks in the river on May 1, 2012, after she fell from a zip line that snapped.
The bacteria entered her bloodstream and caused necrotizing fasciitis, a flesh-eating disease.
It “spreads quickly and kills the body’s soft tissue,” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states on its website.
Both hands, her left leg and her right leg below the knee were amputated.
Copeland delivered the commencement address at Georgia Gwinnett College last month and was featured in People magazine earlier this month.
Q: Do contestants who finish second or third on “Jeopardy!” get to keep their money, or is it just the winner?
—Skip French, Cleveland
A: The second-place finisher on "Jeopardy!" receives $2,000 and the third-place finisher gets $1,000. Only the winner keeps the amount earned on the show.
Andy Johnston with Fast Copy News Service wrote this column. Do you have a question? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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