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Posted on: Friday, April 7, 2006 10:37 AM HST Honolulu man dies of infection after fall into foul harbor Rod Antone
rantone@starbulletin.com
A mortgage loan officer who contracted a serious bacterial infection after falling into the sewage-polluted waters of the Ala Wai Boat Harbor died last night, police and hospital officials said. Oliver Johnson, 34, died at 9:30 p.m. at the Queen’s Medical Center after his family took him off life support. His death leaves many questions including how he ended up in the harbor last Friday and whether the contaminated water caused the infections. The city diverted 48 million gallons of raw sewage into the Ala Wai Canal after a 42-inch force main failed on March 24. State health officials and other medical experts familiar with the case said Johnson was infected with three different bacteria, including two — vibrio vulnificus and aeromonas hydrophila — that can cause flesh-eating symptoms. Within hours of being admitted into the hospital on Sunday, doctors were forced to amputate his left leg above his knee to try and keep the infection from spreading. Even with that Johnson’s body went into septic shock, which caused major organs to fail, including his liver and kidneys. Johnson’s mother and siblings were faced with the option of having doctors amputate his other leg and left arm when the decision was made to take him off of life support, according to one of his friends. Exactly how Johnson ended up in the harbor is unclear. Friends said Johnson told them several different versions of the story last weekend, including one in which he ended up in the water after being involved in a fight with another man while on a boat in the harbor. According to a source close to the investigation, Honolulu police have found a man who admits getting into a fight with Johnson who said he did not force him into the water. Sources said Johnson had been drinking with two other men and a woman during the day last Friday at the Harbor Pub and then later got into a fight with one of the men because he allegedly made advances on the woman. The man told police that he did not force Johnson into the harbor, according to a source. He is expected to come in willingly and be questioned by police. A security guard at the Tradewinds condominium where Johnson lived said his computer and security cameras show Johnson swiping his electronic entry gate card at 5:15 p.m. last Friday. When he got there he was bloody, soaking wet and carrying two 40-ounce bottles of liquor, said David Dillener. Johnson stumbled in the lobby and then fell down, Dillener said. The guard called for police and an ambulance and Johnson was taken by paramedics to Straub Clinic & Hospital, not the Queen’s Medical Center as previously reported. He was released from Straub at about 10:30 p.m. to a friend who took him to her house. A source close to the investigation said Johnson was still drunk and belligerent and refused to be treated at Straub. Police opened a third-degree assault case. Homicide detectives are also investigating. Over the weekend Johnson told friends he was having leg pains and then on Sunday had trouble breathing and was taken to Queen’s. By that evening was on life support. Johnson worked as a loan officer for Lenders Unlimited and was an independent contractor with no medical benefits. Friends said he had no health insurance. State Department of Health officials yesterday initiated what they called a “routine follow-up investigation” into Johnson’s infection, according to spokeswoman Janice Okubo. “We track a number of illnesses in the state that we report to the Centers for Disease Control that they keep in their national database,” Okubo said. “These are reportable diseases that we usually track on a routine basis.” Sources said Johnson’s family has contacted a Honolulu law firm.
E-mail City Desk
A Honolulu man who fell into the sewage-contaminated Ala Wai Yacht Harbor died Thursday night of a massive bacterial infection that caused the loss of one of his legs, septic shock, and ultimately organ failure.

Oliver Johnson, 34, a Honolulu mortgage broker, died between 9:15 and 9:30 p.m. HST Thursday (0715-0730 UTC Friday) when his family removed him from life support.  On Friday, March 31, Johnson had apparently fallen into the waters of the Ala Wai Yacht Harbor, located at the mouth of the Ala Wai Canal on the western side of Waikiki.  

At the time, the canal and surrounding beaches were contaminated by over 48 million gallons of untreated sewage.  The extent to which the sewage spill contributed to Johnson's symptoms remains unclear.

Johnson earlier reported that he had fallen accidentally into the harbor, then later indicated that he had been involved in a fight on board a boat and had been pushed or thrown into the harbor waters.  A security guard at Johnson's apartment reported that he was bloodied and soaking wet, and that he stumbled into the lobby and collapsed.  Paramedics took Johnson to Straub Hospital where he was treated and released.

Johnson reported steadily worsening leg pain that weekend and was admitted to Queen's Hospital on Sunday with breathing difficulties.  Doctors that night amputated his left leg above the knee to try to halt the spread of the infection, and Johnson was placed in a medically induced coma.  

Initially suspecting that Johnson had contracted streptococcus-caused necrotizing fasciitis, doctors later found that Johnson had contracted three different bacteria, two of which, vibrio vulnificus and aeromonas hydrophila, have flesh-eating properties.  Despite the amputation, Johnson's condition steadily worsened to the point where doctors said that his other leg and left arm would also have needed to be amputated to save his life.

An autopsy performed by the Honolulu medical examiner's office reported that Johnson had suffered from massive organ failure caused by septic shock.  The medical examiner noted that Johnson had a vulnificus infection on his foot and suffered from chronic alcoholic liver disease which may have contributed to the infection's taking hold.

The Honolulu Police Department has opened a third-degree assault case; with Johnson's death, homicide detectives are also investigating.  State health officials are also investigating Johnson's illness.

Johnson's family has retained an attorney to investigate the causes surrounding his illness and death.  It is not clear yet whether any legal action will be taken.