Athletes and tourists at Rio Olympics risk ‘violent illness’ from sewage-filled waters – study

‘Athletes at the Rio Olympics are aiming to take home gold – but they could also be taking home a number of viruses and bacteria, according to a new study. It found that city waterways are teeming with raw sewage and carry a huge risk of disease.
The 16-month study commissioned by AP found that infectious adenovirus readings turned up at nearly 90 percent of test sites over the course of the research.
“That’s a very, very, very high percentage,” said Dr. Valerie Harwood, chair of the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of South Florida. “Seeing that level of human pathogenic virus is pretty much unheard of in surface waters in the US. You would never, ever see these levels because we treat our waste water. You just would not see this.”‘
Read more: Athletes and tourists at Rio Olympics risk ‘violent illness’ from sewage-filled waters – study