BUCKNER, Mo. — Recent flooding has Jackson County health officials warning people to get their tetanus shots.
Officials say people dealing with recent flooding and storm clean-up are at a greater risk for tetanus, also known as "lockjaw."
"You've got to be careful if you get into that river water. It's contaminated with a lot of bad stuff," Jackson County Director of Emergency Preparedness Mike Curry said.
The need for the vaccination has become so great that some clinics, including the Live Well Community Health Center in Buckner, Missouri, have had to restock. The American Red Cross shelter is down the street from the Buckner clinic and has been encouraging flood victims to go to the clinic for the shot.
"I heard you could get a tetanus shot and the (hepatitis A) shot down here at the clinic, and I'm going to be in helping them in and out and cleaning and all that," said Esther Williams, a victim of the recent flooding.
Curry said if you can't remember when you received your last tetanus shot, it's time to get another.
"Get another one because it doesn't matter," Curry said. "It doesn't affect you. It just reinforces your system."
The Live Well clinic in Buckner will open at 8 a.m. Thursday and will provide tetanus and hepatitis A vaccinations.
