Vomiting, dizziness, cramps… several hikers end up in the emergency room after drinking water from the GR20 Corsica trail

D’autres randonneurs partagent les mêmes symptômes (illustration). Unsplash – Jérôme Bertaux

Plusieurs personnes souffrent d’importants troubles gastriques depuis qu’elles ont consommé de l’eau venant du sentier GR20 en Corse.

For several days, testimonies from hikers have been multiplying on social networks, according to France 3 Corse ViaStella.

Bacterial infection

Emeline, 20 years old, has barely left the emergency room. When the young woman, originally from Nantes, wakes up to begin her eighth stage of the GR20 route, at the Onda refuge, located at an altitude of 1430 m in the Monte Rotondo massif. , she suffers from severe pain in her stomach. "I have cramps, headaches, a lot of nausea and severe dizziness", Emeline remembers.

Other hikers share the same symptoms: vomiting, diarrhea, dizziness, cramps, etc. Very quickly, Emeline makes the link between her stomach aches and the water she drank. Indeed, the latter filled her gourds with water from the Onda refuge.

For her, there is no doubt: this water is contaminated. Despite their pain, they decide to continue their hike. "The penultimate day, I was very scared, I was on the ridges and I felt dizzy, I was at the end of my strength", she remembers.

Émeline ends up contacting the firefighters. She was rescued by the helicopter of the Corsican high mountain gendarmerie platoon (PGHM). At the Ajaccio hospital, she was found dehydrated due to a bacterial infection.

Same story for Stéphanie, 40 years old : "I immediately had stomach cramps, ;rsquo;enormous diarrhea, I very quickly understood that I was not going to be able to continue". Transferred near Conca by taxi, the woman , originally from Isère, consults a doctor and carries out blood and stool tests.

The mother has caught Shigella bacteria and is put on antibiotics. "I drank tap water next to the Onda refuge because the guards told me it was drinkable. In my group, we all drank that water, and we all got sick", confides Stéphanie.

Filter bottle and tablets

Alert, the Corsica Regional Natural Park (PNRC) has decided to publish a post on social networks this Friday, July 12, in the evening: "< em>The mountain water is not controlled, there may be a dead animal above which would cause contamination of the river. It is impossible for the ARS (Regional Health Agency) to control all sources, every week."

The PNR Corsica advises walkers to be vigilant regarding the use of water on the GR20 trail. "If athletes wish to consume river water, it is imperative to filter it either with a filtering bottle or with tablets&quot ;, specifies Barbara Ferrandi.