Couple who are terrified of flesh-eating bacteria suffer worst nightmare after horsefly bit husband during fishing trip

An extremely diligent couple from Mississippi suffered their worst nightmare when the husband was infected with a flesh-eating bacteria over the weekend.

Steve Wilson, 50, and his wife Amanda, a licensed practical nurse, are still unsure how he contracted Vibrio vulnificus on their fishing trip in the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday.

The lifelong Mississippi residents are avid fishers who take extreme precautions to avoid Vibrio - including never swimming in the Gulf of Mexico and staying in Cat Island's south side while fishing, where the open waters are thought to be less prone to bacteria propagation, Nola.com reports.

Before they enter the water, the couple also always check for cuts and other open wounds through which the bacteria can enter the body and cause necrotizing skin infections, bloodstream infections or gastrointestinal issues.

But Amanda now believes a simple horsefly bite may have been enough of a vector for the potentially deadly bacteria to enter Steve's body.

She said she remembered her husband pausing briefly to apply bug spray, complaining about the bites on his legs, before he cast his first line.

It is possible that he then came in contact with the bacteria when he later dipped a cup into the water to splash fish blood from his boat, or that recent flooding in the area drove enough brackish water into the Jourdan River, where the couple spent the afternoon cooling off, according to the Sun Herald.

Either way, Steve awoke at 5am the next morning to searing pain near his right ankle, which was so severe he couldn't walk.

'He felt like he had been hit in the leg with a hammer,' Amanda recounted.

The ankle was also swollen and hot to the touch, and Amanda said she noticed what appeared to be a small bruise at the center of the swelling.

At that point, she feared her husband may have contracted Vibrio vulnificus and rushed him to Slidell Memorial Hospital.

During the 45 minute ride, Steve also developed a fever of 103.6 degrees Fahrenheit and was septic.

When the couple then arrived at the hospital, doctors confirmed the bacteria was eating away at the flesh of his foot and leg.

In the days since, Steve has undergone surgery and received a slew of antibiotics, which have reduced the swelling.

But he is not out of the woods yet, remaining in the Intensive Care Unit as doctors warned that infections like these could take dramatic turns practically overnight.

He has already suffered one terrifying downturn, Amanda posted on social media Wednesday.

'Steve's heart started having irregular heart rhythm and he turned pale and his blood pressure shot up,' she wrote in a devastating update.

'I heard the surgeon say something about compartment syndrome and I almost lost it,' the nurse continued, referring to a potentially dangerous condition caused by dangerous pressure buildup within enclosed muscle groups.

'I was in a whirlwind, I could not believe how fast things turned bad,' Amanda noted.

Fortunately, the surgeon 'started immediately doing what was needed to relieve the pressure by making 10 more incisions... from his knee to his feet so that the fluid and infection could drain out.'

Almost instantly, she said, the swelling decreased and color started to return to Steve's foot.

As she now waits by her husband's bedside, Amanda said she fears Vibrio cases may spike over the July 4 weekend.

'It just takes as little as a bug bite that we were not even aware of,' she noted.

It is rare to contract Vibrio vulnificus, which is found in warm, brackish coastal waters and raw or undercooked seafood.

Yet cases spiked across the Gulf Coast last year, prompting public health officials in Louisiana to issue warnings about the sharp increase in hospitalizations and deaths.

Most Gulf states have seen fewer cases so far in 2026, but health officials say infections peak between May and October, when the water is warmer and residents are more likely to swim and fish.

In Mississippi, where 58 Vibrio cases were reported last year, seven have been recorded so far this year, none of which have proven fatal, according to data from the State Department of Health.

The rarer Vibrio vulnificus flesh-eating species was behind just one of those cases, Nola.com reports.

Meanwhile, a dozen Vibrio infections have been reported to the Alabama Department of Public Health - three of which involved Vibrio vulnificus specifically, spokesman Ryan Easterline told the outlet.

A total of 19 cases were reported in Alabama last year.

In Louisiana, five Vibrio vulnificus cases had been reported as of Wednesday, all of which led to hospitalizations and two of which were fatal, according to Department of Health spokeswoman Stacey Grow.

The state's totals from last year were not immediately available, but by September, Vibrio vulnificus led to 26 hospitalizations and five deaths, compared to an annual average of about 10 cases and one death over the previous decade.

In general, one in five people who develop a severe infection die - sometimes within just 48 hours of contracting the bacteria.

To prevent infections, public health officials advise those with chronic conditions to avoid eating raw oysters or undercooked shellfish, keep wounds covered when in brackish water and wear protective gloves when handling seafood.

Those who venture into brackish water should also wash any cuts exposed to seawater or raw seafood with soap and clean water, and seek medical care immediately if the wound shows signs of redness, swelling or blistering.