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We now know what caused more than 50 campers to get sick at Rock Eagle

By Aaron Diamant
By Aaron Diamant

PUTNAM COUNTY, Ga. — A local 4-H camp that was closed in a public health scare is now open again.

Channel 2 investigative reporter Aaron Diamant learned that campers at Rock Eagle in Putnam County tested positive for norovirus.

“We’re confident that the cleaning definitely made sure that the environment was safe for returning campers,” said Michael Hokanson with the Georgia Department of Public Health. “They did a 100% job…completely cooperative with us.”

Last week, more than 50 campers caught a stomach bug that caused vomiting, diarrhea and nausea.

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"We're doing a deep cleaning today with a deep disinfect. We sent all our summer camp counselors home to allow them to rest and also give our staff the best opportunity to clean the place," State 4H Leader Arch Smith told Channel 2 Action News last week.

State health officials now confirm lab tests from some of the sickened campers came back positive for norovirus.

“It can be serious in the sense that like all gastrointestinal illnesses, if you’re not replacing the fluids that you use through vomiting, through diarrhea, you can get dehydrated and that can be a very serious situation,” Hokanson said.

The agency is now urging anyone who visited Rock Eagle last week to fill out an online survey, even if they didn't get sick, to help the state identify the source.

“As long as people answer the survey questions, we’ll be able to see if there was something connected to the camp that caused it, because with norovirus it’s always hard to pinpoint a 100% certain cause, where the initial spread happened,” Hokanson said.

Hokanson told Diamant that state inspectors tested the camp’s kitchens and pools Monday, and all came back clean.

“As far as we’re concerned, the camp is 100% safe for people to return," Hokanson said.

Anyone who needs to fill out the survey, can do so here.

Cox Media Group

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