Friends of the family of the 8-year-old Omaha boy who died after being infected with a rare amoeba bacteria in the Elkhorn River have set up a to help the family with medical and funeral expenses.
"With extremely heavy hearts, we share the news that Easton Scott Gray tragically passed away on Wednesday, August 17, 2022. Easton was taken from our world after succumbing to a battle of a very aggressive rare amoeba bacteria that entered his body" while swimming.
Douglas County Health Department officials said Thursday that unusually warm water along the shore of the Elkhorn River likely played a crucial role in Easton's illness. He was confirmed to have died of a nervous system infection caused by the amoeba Naegleria fowleri.
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The rare, fast-moving infection is nearly always fatal. The organism that causes the infection is thought to occur naturally in Nebraska waters but becomes infectious only when those waters reach temperatures in the mid-80s, health officials said.
Water temperatures in the river during the week Easton was in the river were running 86 degrees to 92 degrees, based on measurements taken within several miles of the suspected site of exposure, said Justin Frederick, supervisor of communicable disease epidemiology for the health department. Easton was in a warm, shallow area of the river.
According to the CDC, infection occurs when the amoeba enters through the nose and travels to the brain, where it destroys brain tissue.
Typically, this happens when a person takes in a forceful amount of water through the nose, Huse said.
Health officials, who haven't released Easton's name, said he began showing symptoms five days after exposure. Within 48 hours of showing symptoms, he was hospitalized and then died a few days later.
Swimming and enjoying the outdoors was one of his favorite pastimes, according to the GoFundMe, which was set up by Monte Heiman and Daisy Smith. Heiman said Friday that Easton enjoyed vacationing in Colorado.
Easton is survived by his parents, Ryan and Amber Gray; sisters, Maya and Audrey Gray; brother, Daren Ellwood; and grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins.
"As Easton was taken from the world too soon, we ask for your thoughts and prayers for his family and friends as they mourn this incredibly tragic period," the GoFundMe page reads. "Along with your prayers, please help us raise funds to assist in covering the unexpected medical and funeral expenses incurred by the family of young Easton."
The organizers noted that all donations that are collected will go directly to the Gray family to assist with expenses.Â
Memorial services will be at 10 a.m. Monday at Heafey Hoffmann Dworak Cutler Mortuaries — West Center Chapel, 7805 West Center Road.