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The Black Sea coast in Russia and Georgia: intestinal hell or resort paradise? The Black Sea resorts of Russia are overwhelmed by intestinal infections.

This year, many St. Petersburg residents chose the Russian Black Sea coast as their vacation destination.

Some people return home healthier and rested, but for others, a two-week vacation on the beach turns into an intestinal infection and IV drips. Local residents are not surprised when an ambulance takes another unfortunate vacationer to the hospital - they themselves prefer not to swim in the sea in the summer.

“Everything is clear: they took a sip of water”

St. Petersburg resident Yulia Raevskaya arrived in Adler at the very beginning of July with her mother and three small children. She had not been to the Black Sea since childhood, so she was happily looking forward to a vacation on the beach.

On the very first day, the whole family ran to swim,” she told MK in St. Petersburg.” - The water was cloudy after the recent storm, but that didn’t stop us. There were also quite a few people - local residents say that this year there are more tourists than usual. The children happily splashed along the shore, fortunately the hot weather had heated the water to such an extent that they could swim in it for hours...

But it turned out that a warm sea is by no means a “good thing”. By evening, the eldest child began vomiting and diarrhea, then the middle girl began to vomit. Both had a fever.

We brought with us a lot of medicines from St. Petersburg, including for intestinal disorders, but we couldn’t even give them because the children were vomiting non-stop,” recalls Yulia. - They called an ambulance, it arrived only five hours later. The doctor explained that there are a lot of calls throughout Adler. The first questions she asked us right from the door were: “Did you swim in the sea? Have you taken a sip of water? Everything is clear."

5-year-old Lenya, who was intoxicated, was taken to an infectious diseases hospital under IV drips; the 4-year-old daughter was left at home for now. Yulia herself and her mother, who also felt symptoms of an intestinal infection, were advised to take antibiotics without delay.

It turned out that the infectious diseases department of the regional hospital was filled to capacity with children with poisoning,” continues Yulia. - There are a lot of adults too. Doctors say this happens every year when the sea water warms above 25 degrees. We got on the Internet - and indeed, many stories like ours are told every summer on all tourism forums, and Adler is called “intestinal hell.”

Sochi residents never set foot in “jelly”

According to Yulia, an ambulance came to their hotel every day and took away the next “bought.”

The receptionist and the cleaner of our room all unanimously said that they don’t swim in the summer. Our supplies of medicine quickly ran out, so every day we went to a nearby pharmacy for new ones. There was a queue there, like for ice cream! The saleswoman said: “Smecta” is no longer there,” “The last pack of activated carbon remains.”

After being discharged from the hospital, St. Petersburg residents did not risk swimming in the sea; instead, they walked around the neighborhood and went on excursions.

We wanted to at least go to the pool at one of the boarding houses, but we were scared off by the cost - 500 rubles per hour and a crowd of swimmers who did not show any certificates, says Yulia. - We decided that we could swim in the pool in St. Petersburg too.

Another St. Petersburg resident, Yaroslava Tarakhtiy, moved to Sochi two years ago. Yaroslava has two children who also love to swim in the sea. Her boys also suffered from an intestinal infection in their first year.

Local residents don’t swim much at all from June to September; for them, the water turns into “jelly,” says Yaroslava. - They especially advise avoiding the central beaches of Adler and Sochi, where there are the maximum number of people. Locals prefer to travel by car to Imeretinka - there are few people there and there are no breakwaters: in the open sea the concentration of pathogenic bacteria is not so high.

What is the cause of frequent intestinal disorders at resorts? Krasnodar region, is not entirely clear. Some say that the whole point is insufficient salinity of the Black Sea - because of this, microbes multiply faster in warm water. Others believe that the problem lies in poor quality treatment facilities. Although they were repaired for the Olympics in 2014, about 70 percent (according to environmentalists) of the private sector still drain sewage into mountain rivers and streams “the old fashioned way,” which carry sewage straight into the sea. Recently, the prosecutor's office revealed a case of illegal discharge of wastewater directly to the bottom of the Black Sea - deep-sea discharge of household wastewater was banned two years ago, but for some reason the pipeline continued to be used.

Official authorities diligently avoid the topic of water pollution, but environmental activists and some local residents They believe that frequent cases of poisoning cannot be hushed up. On forums on social networks, they call for writing petitions, complaints and demanding that the authorities solve the problem.

“A clean sea is our wealth,” activists write. - If the problem of wastewater treatment facilities is not urgently addressed systematically, the number of victims will grow, and the Black Sea coast will fall into disrepute among tourists. Nobody wants to go to a place where it’s dangerous to swim; you can’t cut the branch on which we’re all sitting.”

The project was implemented using a grant from St. Petersburg

Russian tourists, who had a less than successful holiday on the Black Sea coast this year, are trying to draw the attention of the authorities to the sanitary situation in the region. According to them, children and adults pick up E. coli by swimming in the sea or just sitting on the beach. At the same time, the Ministry of Health of the Krasnodar Territory and Rospotrebnadzor deny massive outbreaks of infection, writes Newsru.com.

“The situation is simply catastrophic! Being in Adler with a small child for only 2 days and having swam in the sea, instead of a rest we received intestinal infection and a tour to the infectious diseases hospital on Kirova 50, which turned out to be overcrowded with vacationers, sick children even lie in the corridors, there are not enough places! Everyone has the same story: they swam in Adler’s Black Sea, where sewage is dumped and is teeming with coli“- writes Norilsk resident Larisa Yangol in an address to Vladimir Putin and Gennady Onishchenko.

According to her, “being with a small child in Adler for only two days and having swam in the sea, instead of resting, we got an intestinal infection and a trip to the infectious diseases hospital, which turned out to be overcrowded with vacationers.” “Sick children are even lying in the corridors, there are not enough places! Everyone has the same story - they swam in the Adler Black Sea, where sewage is dumped and is infested with E. coli!<...>And this is in the post Olympic Sochi, where they did everything for the guests of the Olympics, but for their children they cannot create conditions for safe holiday! - notes the tourist.

At the same time, the regional Ministry of Health and Rospotrebnadzor deny massive outbreaks of infection. The departments claim that no cases of group or outbreak morbidity associated with swimming in the sea, rivers and use of recreational areas have been registered in the region, Kommersant notes.

Resorts on the Black Sea coast have become incredibly popular over the past few years. Most Russian citizens prefer to spend their holidays on the Black Sea. Pleasant climate, picturesque nature, warm gentle sea, wide beaches coastline and reasonable prices for holidays are what attracts modern tourists.

Recently it became known that E. coli was discovered in the Black Sea. This news literally turned the whole idea of a pleasant holiday upside down and became the cause of mass anxiety, almost panic. Many of those who had already purchased vouchers and tickets began to refuse them, not wanting to spend their entire vacation in a hospital bed. So what do real reviews say on this issue? Was it really discovered in the Black Sea or was it all the machinations of attackers? Let's take a closer look at this issue.

Tourist dissatisfaction

Tourists spending their holidays at resorts on the Black Sea coast are concerned about the sanitary condition of the region. The petition about E. coli in the Black Sea is the fruit of their collective work. So they complain that after taking water procedures, that is, banal swimming in sea water, they have to become another patient in overcrowded medical institutions. And it’s all because of E. coli in the Black Sea. Vomiting, weakness, diarrhea, loss of strength and a fairly high body temperature - all these symptoms are present to varying degrees in patients at the local hospital.

Hospitals are really overcrowded, patients are lying in the corridor, and all this is in Olympic Sochi, which was literally revived from the ashes, in which all the necessary conditions were created for family vacation. Children are at risk; they are primarily affected by E. coli in the Black Sea. Numerous reviews from tourists and vacationers indicate dirt on the beaches, widespread unsanitary conditions, and the presence of waste and sewage water in the sea. If you look at the reviews of tourists, you will probably find information in each of them about disgusting health, vomiting, and terrible pain after the first contact with water. There is no doubt that E. coli was discovered on the Black Sea coast. Another thing is what are the reasons for such a widespread infection, its massive and active spread, and whether measures will be taken to stabilize the situation.

Of course, not everyone can afford expensive foreign resorts. On the other hand, why go somewhere if our country, due to its profitable geographical location has its own exit to warm sea. Every year, hundreds of thousands of tourists from different parts of the country vacation at the resorts of the Krasnodar Territory; military personnel who, due to their profession, do not have the right to leave the Russian Federation, spend their vacation here. We are all interested in ensuring that our resorts create the necessary conditions for a complete, most comfortable and, most importantly, safe holiday.

Possible reasons

The authorities speak rather restrainedly on this issue, trying to maintain calm in the region. Meanwhile, local hospitals continue to receive complaints from tourists and local residents.

Why is there E. coli in the Black Sea? What caused the mass poisoning of vacationers? Are there methods to stop the spread of infection in the region? Rospotrebnadzor presented a report on the above survey of water on the Black Sea coast of Sochi and Adler. According to him, it was not found in the sea; therefore, the cause of such a massive epidemic could be anything, but not an infection. Of course, the authorities refer to overcrowding of the beaches, unsanitary conditions, and non-compliance with basic hygiene requirements by vacationers.

Escherichia coli in the Black Sea may appear due to active discharge into sea water waste and sewer water, garbage. If you have ever vacationed at the Black Sea resorts of Russia during the season, you probably had the opportunity to appreciate all this “splendor”.

How does infection occur?

Disinterested parties, after their own independent examination, have revealed that E. coli is constantly present in the Black Sea. August is the peak season when infection is widespread. It is at this time of year that local hospitals become overwhelmed with patients.

So, it was possible to reveal that most often infection occurs after direct contact with sea water, namely ingestion of it while swimming. At risk are children aged two years and older, who, due to their age, find it difficult to observe basic protective and hygiene measures. That is why children are frequent patients in the infectious diseases department of local hospitals. As you know, treating an infection in a child has a number of difficulties, can take a long time and lead to serious consequences.

So, annual problems with the sea, or rather the state of sea water, begin at the beginning of the season - June, when the temperature begins to gradually rise. It is under such conditions that the infection begins to appear and subsequently actively spread. The picture is complicated by breakwaters that contribute to water stagnation, as well as the lack of a sewerage system in Sochi, as a result of which all wastewater is sent straight to the sea.

Why Russian resorts

Of course, all tourists and vacationers are interested in the geography of the spread of infection. We all know from our school geography course that the Black Sea belongs not only Russian Federation, at least Türkiye and Bulgaria offer their guests to visit the Black Sea. E. coli (where it is not present, epidemics do not occur), however, is found only in our country. Why does information about infection come from Russian resorts? These are the questions that modern tourists ask.

According to experts on this matter, E. coli is a bacterium that can be found in any environment. That is why not a single resort with a massive concentration of vacationers during the season can completely protect itself from such a nuisance. Another thing is that E. coli in the Black Sea (2016 was the year when the current sanitary situation was declared catastrophic) is a consequence of water contamination with feces, processed products, and wastewater. And all these illegal emissions occur again within our state. Here is the answer to the question why E. coli was discovered in the Black Sea.

Moreover, local authorities are trying to squeeze the maximum out of resorts during the season. This is evidenced by the overcrowding of beaches, hotels, inns and holiday homes. Of course, high air temperature promotes the spread of infection, which leads to such a reaction.

A little about the infection

For some tourists, the information that E. coli was found in the Black Sea means nothing. They understand nothing about medicine, have no idea what an infection is, what area of the human body it affects, how it is transmitted. That is why sometimes they cannot identify its presence in their body.

Non-pathogenic varieties of E. coli are part of the intestinal microflora and, accordingly, are present in the body of every person. Pathogenic strains cause infectious and inflammatory diseases, most often of the gastrointestinal tract. They produce enterotoxins that cause diarrhea.

About symptoms

Symptoms of infection include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, and fever. Among the main causes of infection, experts identify failure to comply with basic hygiene standards. At the same time, infection often occurs at resorts during mass gatherings of people.

Treatment

After E. coli was found in the Black Sea, local hospitals and clinics do not stop receiving complaints from vacationers. The infectious diseases departments are literally overcrowded, people are even lying in the corridor on the floor. E. coli has become a big problem in the Black Sea. You should not self-medicate. It is difficult to cope with an infection without the help of doctors; it is better to consult a specialist immediately after detecting the first signs of the disease. Most often, antibiotics, absorbent drugs based on activated carbon, for example, and probiotics are used for therapy.

Fighting the epidemic

Of course, without the intervention of local authorities it is unlikely that the problem will be solved and eradicated. The main problem of the resort is the lack of a unified sewer system. Sochi was put in order, landscaped, some of its areas were literally rebuilt, but the issue with the sewerage system remains open. And all this happens in the main resort and tourist center a country visited by hundreds of thousands of tourists every year. Of course, under such conditions, sewage and sewage water flow into the sea in unlimited quantities. If you remember your school geography course, you will probably note that the Black Sea, from a sanitation point of view, is not located in the most favorable way, but all because the water in it is renewed at a negligibly low rate - in most cases it stagnates. And under the influence of sweltering heat, it becomes a real hotbed of infections, including intestinal ones.

Great attention should be paid to the tourists themselves, or rather, to accustom them to comply with basic standards and hygiene requirements. First of all, it should be prohibited to sell on local beaches drinks, food: numerous studies have found that it is while eating on the beach with dirty hands that infection can occur. It is necessary to eat only in trusted establishments, avoiding all contact with locally produced products presented on the beach.

How to protect yourself from infection

How to go to the sea without catching an intestinal infection? This question is one of the most pressing today, because not everyone is ready to give up their summer vacation.

So, first of all, at resorts you should take care of hygiene, take a shower after each sea swim, cleansing your skin. A shower not only helps to wash off sea salt from the body, but also removes all contaminants that are definitely present in the water to one degree or another. It is here, at sea, that you should be more attentive and demanding about everything that you eat, what your children eat, be sure to wash your hands before every meal, use sunscreen and spend more time in the fresh air, trying to find a secluded place. Agree, tourists who vacation on the same Black Sea, but choose for their leisure time distant from the center, more secluded, sometimes wild places, almost never receive complaints. Tourists who go to the sea at the height of the season, when the beaches are simply crowded, complain.

What to do for those who have already bought tickets

If you have already purchased vouchers, but are concerned about information about the discovery of infection on the Black Sea coast, do not panic. E. coli in the Black Sea (whether it’s 2016 or another year, it doesn’t matter) is not uncommon. It should be understood that for resort towns in sweltering heat this is the norm. Another thing is how you will feel about it. Don't be afraid or give up on your planned trip. Look: even after numerous warnings, people still continue to come to Sochi and Adler.

You just need to remember a few simple rules:

avoid swimming during extreme heat - it is under the influence of high air temperatures and prolonged heating of water in the sea near the shore that bacteria begin to accumulate in huge quantities. It’s better to wait a little and go into the sea when the air temperature returns to normal;
try, if possible, not to swallow water while bathing, explain this to children who are at risk;
Never use sea water to wash fruits and vegetables;
observe hygiene standards;
After each contact with sea water, be sure to wash your hands with soap;
understand that coastal areas are not intended for urination; there are specially designated places for this - toilets.

Summing up

Of course, it is stupid to deny the presence of infection in the Black Sea when the region’s hospitals are simply overcrowded with infected tourists. However, if each of us takes control of our health and follows simple rules for staying at resorts, we will be able to reduce the likelihood of infection significantly. Of course, government agencies must intervene in the problem, carry out all the necessary measures to eliminate the source of infection, develop a sewerage project, monitor the condition of the beaches and food in the resort area. Only joint efforts aimed at eliminating the problem will lead to maximum results.

The Black Sea is poisoned by a poisonous bacterium. The environmental situation is so catastrophic that hundreds of local residents and tourists turn to doctors every day with complaints of intestinal infection.

On the one hand, everything can be explained by natural causes - dangerous algae began to multiply due to the fact that the water temperature reached an anomalous 29 degrees, and, given the location of the sea, the circulation of water in it is extremely slow, in fact it is a closed reservoir. But experts also name other factors: for example, the excessive activity of officials who, without the necessary base, began to squeeze the maximum out of domestic resorts.

Pleasant impressions from summer holidays She doesn’t have much: they all fit into a few photographs. 14-year-old Sonya was vacationing on the Black Sea, but this year it was not too kind to her. After just a couple of swims, she came down with an acute infection. According to the girl, the water was warm and dirty, jellyfish and even bottles were floating in it.

Similar situations happen everywhere. Hospitals in resort towns are packed to capacity: there is only one diagnosis - acute intestinal infection. Many of those who decided to spend their long-awaited vacation on the beaches of Adler, Anapa or Gelendzhik literally find themselves in hospital beds on the second day.

“The situation is simply catastrophic: after swimming in the sea, instead of relaxing, we got an intestinal infection and a trip to an infectious diseases hospital, which turned out to be overcrowded with vacationers. Everyone has the same story: we swam in the Adler Black Sea, where sewage is dumped and is infested with E. coli,”- the petition says.

The situation in resort towns really raises concerns, even health officials do not hide: hospital beds are filled exclusively with vacationers.

On the Sochi beach, as always, there is nowhere to lay a towel. Velvet season is in full swing, and the flow of tourists does not stop. Even these frightening numbers don’t stop holidaymakers: the water temperature is 27 degrees, and two weeks ago it almost reached 30. For the Black Sea, this is an exorbitant indicator. However, doctors report: you can swim in such water. And vacationers are happy to follow these recommendations. It’s just that after swimming like this, tourists often have to exchange beach beds for beds in infectious diseases departments.

Another problem typical of coastal towns is the irresponsibility of local residents and businessmen. Numerous hotels, restaurants, shops and residential buildings are simply not connected to the central sewer system. The authorities, of course, are fighting this, but not everyone follows their instructions. In many resort areas, tourists literally swim in their own excrement.

“Very often with my own eyes I see those sewage drains that either flow into the sea with rivers or with storm water. That is, this is due to the fact that there are a lot of mini-hotels, a lot of houses that are rented out, and many simply have their own sewerage system - they simply throw it away,"- says ecologist Vitaly Bezrukov.

And this is a problem that is faced not only in Russia. For example, for the Bulgarians the Black Sea has long turned into a landfill. The bodies of baby dolphins are regularly found on the beaches of the Gold Coast, and no one even tries to disguise the pipes through which waste flows into the sea. In addition, temperatures here are breaking records.

The sea water temperature on the Varna coast is 24 degrees, and this does not have a very good effect on the marine ecosystem. Bacteria multiply very easily in water. Besides large companies very often they break the law by dumping waste into seas around the world, in particular in the Black Sea, near industrial cities.

Now reports of an epidemic of intestinal infection in the Black Sea resorts are coming from almost all countries that have access to it. And if the situation cannot be corrected in the near future, there is a risk of facing an environmental disaster on a regional scale.

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“I ask you to influence the local authorities and the general sanitary situation on the coast, which is out of control and threatens the health of the nation!” - writes Yangol. She addressed her appeal to the country's President Vladimir Putin and the country's chief sanitary doctor
Global Look Press

Russian tourists decided to draw the attention of the authorities to the sanitary situation in Black Sea coast. They call it “catastrophic” and call on officials to stop the spread of intestinal infection in the Black Sea resorts, according to a petition posted on the website.

The author of the appeal is Norilsk resident Larisa Yangol. According to her, “being with a small child in Adler for only two days and having swam in the sea, instead of resting, we got an intestinal infection and a trip to the infectious diseases hospital, which turned out to be overcrowded with vacationers.” “Sick children even lie in the corridors, there are not enough places! Everyone has the same story - they swam in the Adler Black Sea, where sewage is dumped and infested with E. coli!... And this is in post-Olympic Sochi, where they did everything for the guests of the Olympics, but for their own children cannot create conditions for a safe rest!" - writes the tourist.

Within a month, more than 800 people signed the petition. “I am signing because my vacation on the Black Sea coast was hopelessly ruined, because all of the 6 people in our company had an intestinal infection, spent a lot of money on medicine and stayed in the room for most of the vacation! Urgent checks are needed from Moscow, because local authorities are keeping silent about the whole truth about the epidemiological situation,” writes Moscow resident Tatyana Chugunova in the comments.

Since mid-August, numerous vacationers have been publishing on social networks reports of cases of intestinal infection and rotavirus in Sochi and Anapa, as well as their reports of visits to overcrowded hospitals. The resource "BlogSochi" published a message from Angela Alekseenko, who complained that her child in Adler contracted an intestinal infection simply by sitting on the beach.

“60 children are admitted to the hospital every night with one diagnosis - “intestinal infection”, all the children are in the arms of their parents, they are constantly vomiting, they are exhausted and cannot stand on their feet,” the woman writes. “Poor doctors who do nothing they have time, the hospitals are overcrowded."

At the same time, the Ministry of Health of the Krasnodar Territory and Rospotrebnadzor deny massive outbreaks of infection. According to the Ministry of Resorts of the Krasnodar Territory, the congestion of Black Sea beaches in the high season of 2016 exceeded 100%. However, the regional department of Rospotrebnadzor reported that no cases of group and outbreak morbidity associated with water-based infection transmission (swimming in the sea, rivers, use of recreational areas) have been registered in the region, writes Kommersant. This information was confirmed to the publication by the Ministry of Health of the Krasnodar Territory.

The Sochi mayor's office suggests that parents and their children spend too long in the sun, including at hours when it becomes unsafe to be there. According to the deputy head of the tourism department of the Sochi administration, Elena Pavlovich, they do not rule out cases of poisoning, but emphasize that this is not widespread at the resort. And parents are advised to monitor their children more closely so that they are not in the sun all the time and do not drink sea water, the website Kuban.info reports.

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