Illnesses Among Visitors Prompt Closure of New York Water Park

A popular water park in central New York has been shut down for the rest of the summer as the number of people who developed gastrointestinal illnesses after visiting the park rose to more than 1,700, the state Health Department announced Friday.

So far, 13 of those cases have been confirmed as cryptosporidiosis, a common but highly contagious waterborne disease that can cause diarrhea, nausea and fever that can last for weeks.

Tests found cryptosporidium in two storage tanks that supplied water for Seneca Lake State Park’s Sprayground park, officials said Friday.

The illness usually goes away without treatment in healthy individuals, health officials said.