It's a parasite in your lungs that needs to be treated," says Beckford.Īnd if you ever see one of these worms don't touch it. "If you have long worms basically you start this horrible coughing. The worm infects rats and that's when it can be passed on to humans, potentially causing meningitis and other horrible diseases. They're likely shipped to Miami, hidden with the plants and tropical fruits. He tells us the New Guinea flatworms originate in that South Pacific island. This is very serious, this is very serious.” That's why officials need your help finding them.īeckford tells us state officials "have a phone number that one can call to report this problem and they'll send an agent to actually deal with that. The worms may look harmless, but mix in a rat or two and a person could be affected by a deadly disease affecting the brain and spinal cord. "They're a dark worm with a dorsal orange stripe down the center of their back," says Beckford. Now a Cape resident has found some of those worms in a flower pot and that has officials launching a serious investigation.įox 4 showed photos of the worms to Roy Beckford, an agriculture agent in Lee County who works with the University of Florida.
It was big news last year when these worms were found in Miami, now we're learning they were also spotted in Cape Coral last September, we just didn't know. It's an invasive species called the New Guinea flatworm and was discovered last year in Miami, now local and state officials are investigating. A potentially deadly worm found in Cape Coral Thursday is raising concerns about how it got here and how to keep them out.
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