A man claims he contracted a "harmful parasite that eats away at the cornea of the eye" when he was splashed with water while riding the Raging Rapids at Kennywood Park, according to a lawsuit filed this week. 
 
 Robert and Krystsina Trostle, of Squirrel Hill, were waiting in line July 2 when they noticed that the water surrounding the ride was "dirty, stagnant and sludge-like," the lawsuit said. "Additionally, the Trostles noticed that the waterfall was not operating." 
 
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 Near the end of the ride, Robert Trostle was splashed with water in his left eye, according to the lawsuit. 
 
 "Unbeknownst to Robert, this seemingly inconsequential event caused him to come into contact with microsporidia, a harmful parasite that eats away at the cornea of the eye and was present in the water used in the Raging Rapids," the lawsuit claims. 
 
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 Over the next two days, Robert Trostle's left eye became inflamed, itchy, red, photosensitive and "severely painful," the lawsuit said. 
 
 He was diagnosed with acute conjunctivitis on July 5 and given antibiotics, but the symptoms got worse, and he was diagnosed with microsporidia keratitis on July 14, according to the lawsuit. 
 
 "Robert had to undergo an extremely painful surgery where the parasite was scraped out of the eye with a surgical scalpel, and he was required to remain in a dark room for the next two days," the lawsuit said. "The microsporidia parasite penetrated the second level of Robert's eye and the entirety of the parasite was unable to be removed via surgery. Robert still has problems with his left eye, including but not limited to, blurry vision, difficulty with night vision, redness, itchiness, dryness, inflammation and pain, along with microsporidia still being present in his eye." 
 
 The Trostles claim that Kennywood did not have "adequate policies and procedures to inspect the water being used on the 'Raging Rapids' ride to eliminate and/or reduce the dangers posed by microsporidia and ensure it is safe for use," according to the lawsuit. 
 
 The suit was filed in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court, alleging negligence against Kennywood Entertainment and claiming damages in excess of $35,000. 
 
 Nobody answered the door Wednesday night at the address listed in the Trostles' lawsuit. 
 
 “As soon as he was shot in the eye with the water, he immediately started experiencing, that day, discomfort in that eye. There's no other possible cause other than that," said Trostle's attorney, Alan Perer, via telephone. 
 
 Kennywood spokesman Nick Paradise said he was unable to comment on pending litigation. In an email, he said the parasite claim was an allegation that has not been proven. 
 
 
 
 "In general, safety is Kennywood's top priority in everything we do, and that certainly extends to maintenance of the rides and water involved in rides," Paradise said. 
 
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 A Pittsburgh man claims in a lawsuit that a ride on the Raging Rapids at Kennywood left him with a parasite that “eats away at the cornea of the eye.” 
 
 The lawsuit filed this week by Robert Trostle and his wife, Krystsina, in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court claims he was splashed in the left eye by dirty water that contained a parasite known as microsporidia. Doctors have not been able to completely kill off the parasite, according to the lawsuit. 
 
 During a trip to Kennywood on July 2, “while in line, the Trostles noticed the water surrounding the Raging Rapids was dirty, stagnant and sludge-like,” the lawsuit said. “Additionally, the Trostles noticed the waterfall was not operating.” 
 
 Robert Trostle was splashed toward the end of the ride, “which is customary for those riding the Raging Rapids.” 
 
 The splash led the parasite to embed in Trostle's eye, according to the lawsuit, which alleges negligence against Kennywood Entertainment Inc. 
 
 His left eye became inflamed, and he was treated July 5 for acute conjunctivitis with antibiotics. But his condition worsened, and doctors diagnosed him on July 14 with microsporidia keratitis. 
 
 “Robert had to undergo an extremely painful surgery where the parasite was scraped out of the eye with a surgical scalpel, and he was required to remain in a dark room for the next two days,” according to the lawsuit. “The microsporidia parasite penetrated the second level of Robert's eye and the entirety of the parasite was unable to be removed via surgery.” 
 
 He still suffers from inflammation, blurry vision, redness and pain, the lawsuit said. 
 
 The Raging Rapids simulates a whitewater rafting excursion and opened in 1985, according to Kennywood's website. 
 
 The Trostles, of Squirrel Hill, are represented by Pittsburgh attorney Alan Perer, who told the Tribune-Review Thursday that the Allegheny County Health Department took samples from the ride's water after the incident. He said the health department would not provide results, despite Perer filing a Right To Know request in the fall. 
 
 “That's one of the reasons we filed suit,” Perer said. “We need more information. But we're virtually certain this is how he got the parasite. 
 
 The county health department issued a statement Thursday afternoon. 
 
 “This was reported to the Health Department during the summer,” health department spokesman Ryan Scarpino wrote in an email. “ACHD notified the Pennsylvania Department of Health, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture and the (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), and assisted them with the investigation. At this time, the investigation is still ongoing, and no further information is available.” 
 
 Kennywood spokesman Nick Paradise said he could not comment on pending litigation. He said safety of all rides and water are a “top priority” at Kennywood. 
 
 In June, the family of a teen who contracted a brain-eating amoeba after rafting at a North Carolina water park, sued the facility. 
 
 The lawsuit on befalf of Lauren Seitz, 18, alleged the U.S. National Whitewater Center's rafting channels were dangerous and that park operators showed “conscious disregard for the safety of visitors.” 
 
 Seitz, of Westerville, Ohio, died of a rare brain infection caused by a single-celled animal, the amoeba Naegleria fowleri, days after visiting the center on June 8, 2016, with a church group , according to the Charlotte Observer. She was in a raft that overturned. The amoeba can infect a person when water goes up the nose and infections are rare, but almost always fatal. the Observer reported. 
 
 The park closed down for nearly two months and a federal epidemiologist found that filtration and disinfection systems were inadequate to properly clean the facility's waters. 
 
 A park employee complained that its water quality caused raft guides to routinely contract staph infections, ringworm and other skin illnesses, the Observer reported. Dead animals and trash were commonly found floating on the water's surface, the employee said. 
 
 The park wound up changing its filtration and disinfection system. 
 
 Ben Schmitt is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 412-320-7991, bschmitt@tribweb.com or via Twitter at @Bencschmitt. ||||| A British man was forced to have his eye removed after a contact lens infection spiraled out of control, and now he’s sharing his story so others won’t suffer the same consequences. 
 
 Long-time paramedic Andrew Carthew, 59, wore prescription contact lenses for years and said he was always careful not to sleep or shower or swim with them in. But in June of 2015, he woke one morning with a “weepy eye,” the UK’s Daily Mail reported online. 
 
 He thought it was conjunctivitis, a common, treatable eye infection. 
 
 But the eye became painful and sensitive to bright light within a day or two, Carthew said. He ended up in the emergency room. His symptoms didn’t improve and he soon learned he had a rare infection called acanthamoeba keratitis — a serious condition caused by an amoeba. 
 
 Symptoms of acanthamoeba keratitis include: 
 
 Eye pain 
 
 
 
 Eye redness 
 
 
 
 Blurred vision 
 
 
 
 Sensitivity to light 
 
 
 
 Sensation of something in the eye 
 
 
 
 Excessive tearing 
 
 
 
 Doctors can diagnose the infection based on symptoms, or the amoeba can also be identified by a scraping of the eye or by viewing it through a process called confocal microscopy. 
 
 The infection is treated with one or more prescription medications. In Carthew’s case, antibiotics did not help, so his doctors then performed a corneal transplant. But the infection was so severe they finally had no choice but to remove his eye. 
 
 After a year in and out of medical care and adjusting to the loss of the eye, UK news outlets are reporting that Carthew is now getting the word out to help other contact lens wearers avoid the same fate. 
 
 The parasite is common in nature, where it can be found in lakes and oceans, the soil and even air. It’s also present in tap water. About 85 percent of infections occur in people wearing contacts that got contaminated. 
 
 Normally, only about one to two cases of infection per million contact lens users occur in the United States, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But between 2005 and 2007, an acanthamoeba keratitis outbreak infected at least 138 people in 35 states. 
 
 About 41 million Americans wear contact lenses, and while they are typically a safe and effective alternative to glasses, they can cause serious problems if wearers don’t follow instructions on how to care for them. 
 
 “While patients, especially younger patients, are really excited about being fitted with contact lenses, I stress to them that contact lenses are medical devices that have to be properly fitted, evaluated and that they must adhere to proper contact lens care,” Dr. Andrea Thau of the American Optometric Association (AOA), told CBS News in August when a new CDC report came out warning contact lens users to be vigilant about eye care. 
 
 Here’s what to do to avoid infections and other vision complications, according to the AOA: 
 
 Visit your eye doctor every year. 
 
 
 
 Buy your contact lenses from a trusted source. 
 
 
 
 Don’t panic if your lens is “lost” in your eye. 
 
 
 
 Don’t ever share contacts. 
 
 
 
 Never use tap water to clean and rinse lenses. 
 
 
 
 Keep your lens case clean. 
 
 
 
 No matter how tired you are, do not sleep in your contacts. 
 
 
 
 Don’t over wear your lenses. 
 
 
 
 You can’t be careful enough, as Carthew learned. A health professional himself, he said he followed contact lens cleaning guidelines, but he said that it’s possible he handled his lenses with unwashed hands at some point, which might have led to his infection.
– Its website proclaims Kennywood "Pittsburgh's best amusement park." Robert Trostle would likely append "for contracting an eye-eating parasite" to the end of that. That's what the Squirrel Hill man is claiming happened to him during a July 2 visit to the Pennsylvania park, per a negligence lawsuit filed Tuesday. It says Trostle and wife Krystsina opted to ride the Raging Rapids water ride, which is supposed to mimic a white-water rafting trip, even after noticing the ride's water was "dirty, stagnant and sludge-like" and its waterfall wasn't running. The ride typically splashes riders at the end, reports TribLive, and in Trostle's case, he said the water hit his left eye—and then the trouble allegedly began. Per the suit, the eye reddened, became sensitive to light, and itchy and painful, reports the Post-Gazette. He was initially diagnosed with acute conjunctivitis. Antibiotics didn't rectify the situation, and on July 14 he was diagnosed with microsporidia keratitis. The suit says microsporidia is a "harmful parasite that eats away at the cornea of the eye," and alleges it was in the ride's water. It's also still in Trostle's eye, he says: Though he underwent an "extremely painful" surgery that involved scraping the parasite out with a scalpel, he claims the parasite reached a "second level" of his eye where surgery can't reach it, leaving him with vision problems and discomfort. A rep for the park wouldn't comment on the suit directly but says, "Safety is the top priority of everything we do." WTAE reports Trostle is seeking at least $35,000 in damages. (This 18-year-old died after being exposed to an amoeba on a rafting trip.)