(KLFY/CNN) - Lots of people enjoy raw oysters despite some of the health risks associated with eating raw food.
But for a Texas woman, an infection turned deadly last year. Now, her loved ones want to let people know about the dangers of eating raw oysters.
Texas residents Vicki Bergquist and wife Jeanette LeBlanc were visiting family in Louisiana.
Their friend Karen Bowers said both she and LeBlanc shucked and ate about two dozen raw oysters.
"About 36 hours later she started having extreme respiratory distress, had a rash on her legs and everything," said Jeannette's wife Vicki Bergquist.
"An allergic reaction of sorts, that's what I would call it, and that's what we thought," said Bowers.
LeBlanc's condition went from bad to worse in the first 48 hours.
Doctors told LeBlanc she had vibrio.
"It's a flesh-eating bacteria. She ended up with really severe wounds on her legs from this bacteria," said Bergquist.
According to the CDC, people become infected with vibrio after eating raw or undercooked shellfish or by exposing open wounds to brackish water.
LeBlanc had been in contact with both.
For the next 21 days, she fought for her life.
"It was just too much for her. She fought very very hard," said Bowers.
Jeanette wasn't able to recover and died on Oct. 15 2017.
"She was bigger than life. She was a great person, laughed a lot, fun, loved her family, loved her dad," said Bergquist.
Bergquist and Bowers are raising awareness about vibrio, saying they wish they would have known the risks.
"If they really knew what could happen to them and they could die, literally die within 48 to 36 hours of just eating raw oysters, is it really worth it?" said Bowers.
"If we had known that the risk was so high you know, I think we would've or she would have stopped eating oysters," said Bergquist.
The CDC says about 80,000 people get sick and 100 people die from vibriosis every year.
Most infections occur from May through October when water temperatures are warmer.
Courtesy KLFY-TV via CNN Newsource
