(CNN) Texas officials said that it could take months to disinfect the brain-eating amoeba contaminated water that claimed the life of a 6-year-old boy. Greg Abbott held a news conference Tuesday to address what he called "the total tragedy" of the death of Josiah McIntyre, who CNN previously reported died from single-celled brain eating amoeba Naegleria fowleri found in the Lake Jackson water supply earlier this month. While Naegleria fowleri infections are rare, most are fatal, according to the CDC"The most I could do with his family was to assure them that his life was not lost in vain," Abbott told reporters at a press conference Tuesday. "This is a total tragedy for Josiah as well as his family but we as leaders in the state of Texas must seize upon the strategy to make sure this never happens again." Toby Baker, executive director of Texas Commission for Environmental Quality, said employees of his department have been "working 24 hours a day to try and remedy the problem that is going on with the drinking water situation."

Source: CNN September 30, 2020 19:52 UTC