After inducting the world’s highest coronavirus fatalities while simultaneously witnessing one of its biggest waves of anti-racism protests in recent history, the country may be dealing with flesh-eating bacteria.

Health officials in the US state of Connecticut are issuing warnings to residents after a few people developed infections which were caused by a type of flesh-eating bacteria. It was found in the Long Island Sound.

Vibrio bacteria cause an estimated 80,000 illnesses and 100 deaths in the United States each year, with most infections in May through October when water temperatures are warm, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

One in five people with this type of infection die, sometimes within days of becoming ill, the CDC warns.

Because the bacteria thrive in warmer, salty water, it's usually found mostly in southern waters, as per the health officials.

But cases of Vibrio infection began showing up in emergency rooms along the Delaware Bay a few years back.

Dr Matthew Cartter, the state epidemiologist for the Health Department referred to the identification of cases as “very concerning”.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention categorizes Vibrio as the same genus of bacteria responsible for causing infections from raw and undercooked shellfish.

The extreme infection caused by them Vibrio Vulnificus is capable of causing life-threatening illnesses, especially if an open wound is exposed to an infected shellfish.

It is because of this reason that the CDC warns people with recent wounds, be it from tattoos, piercings, or surgery to steer clear of saltwater.