Original subtitles

.

We begin tonight with an environmental mystery.

...debris along the beach as far as the eye can see.

( news reports overlapping )

A large fish kill has struck

along the shoreline of the Sebastian Inlet State Park.

Biologists tell us there were up to a million...

She captured reams of dead fish

Fishery staff are baffled at what caused

these hundreds of dead fish...

Up to 5,000 blackbirds

fell within a one-mile area...

Roughly two million...

Dead fish on the shores of Rio de Janeiro...

Two million fish here along Chesapeake Bay...

Thousands of birds started falling from the sky...

( voices coalesce )

...investigation is ongoing...

They got me up 4:00 in the morning,

told me we had birds falling out of the sky.

Reporter: Scientists don't know what killed them.

Man over speaker: To your left--

look over to your left.

Okay, you can see that's where the footage

about where you can, uh, address...

- what that was about, okay? - Okay, sounds good.

Okay, why don't we start off? If you could just

fill us in with basic details...

Okay.

Uh, my name is Donna Thompson.

I was a Communications major

at American University

covering the July 4th festivities

in Claridge, Maryland, on July 4th, 2009.

No cam-- hey.

This is the first time I am speaking publicly

about the disaster that happened.

( clamoring )

- I was there. - ( sirens blare )

Let's follow it.

( sighs )

Man over computer: You okay, Donna?

Donna?

- Yeah. - Okay?

- Are we gonna be all right? - Yeah, I'm sorry.

I thought this was gonna be a little easier to talk about.

Okay, tell me when you're ready and, um,

you can continue.

- Okay. - I know it's hard. Go ahead.

Um...

my name is Donna Thompson.

For three years, I and a few others

have been trying to speak out about what happened

in Claridge, Maryland,

on July 4th, 2009.

But sometimes words have no impact.

But now, with the help of a website

- all of the digital information - ( crowd chattering )

that was recorded that day has been obtained.

All of the digital information that was confiscated.

Now, I don't know if anyone

is gonna be watching this.

I don't know if anything is gonna happen to me

as a result of me putting this out there,

but I do know that

I can't move on with my life

until this story is told.

You know, it's just, um...

it's hard to explain what this town used to be like.

Well, it's 6:00 in the morning

with "Mike in the Morning" on this beautiful day,

Good morning, Chesapeake, and good morning, America.

- Listen, I'm your marathon man. - ( bell rings )

- ( firework pops ) - What does that mean?

Hopefully you're gonna be with me day and night

as I am with you and we can celebrate.

I can't think of a better way to celebrate

than a little music from the heartland.

Donna's voice: I used to come here every summer

with my folks.

It's hard to explain what this town used to be like.

I mean, it was fun.

It was where I had my first crab dinner,

my first summer kiss.

So, uh, that's the mayor right there.

Mayor John Stockman.

He actually used to run a vacuum cleaner shop,

and then one day he just up and got everyone

to vote for him for mayor.

Right there, that's Martin and Helen Wycoff.

They were both involved in a lot of community service programs.

Um, their whole family actually died that day.

Cameraman: Three, two, one.

Good morning, Maryland.

- Oh, wait. Sorry. - Cameraman: It's okay.

Donna's voice: Honestly, why didn't anyone tell me

my pants were too tight?

I'm sorry. It's just that every time I look at this footage,

it's...

it's a little difficult, and I have this tendency

to overcompensate a little bit.

- So... - Man over computer: So you use humor, uh,

to hide those emotions.

- I understand. - Right.

I mean, maybe you should've gotten

a voice actor or something to do this.

- I don't know. - ( record scratches )

Okay, okay. I gotta stop this.

I've been getting too many phone calls,

too many complaints.

For those of you who do care,

it is Aaron Copland.

That's a piece from "Our Town."

What do you say we kick the energy up a little bit, huh?

Donna's voice: I was just a summer intern.

I was just so excited I was gonna be

actually interviewing people.

I think it's every girl's dream to be Miss Crustacean.

I hope it's the beginning of something much, much bigger.

I want to thank my parents for their support

and my sister Taylor for always being there for me.

Good morning, Maryland.

This is Donna Thompson, and I'm in Claridge, Maryland.

Claridge is the host of our annual

Eastern Chesapeake July 4th party.

And I will be here all day to cover the events.

It is my great pleasure to announce

the beginning of the 57th Annual

Claridge Crab Eating Spectacular.

( cheering )

Am I in the frame?

Donna's voice: So, this is good old Claridge.

It was founded in 1903,

supposedly by a fisherman who ran around here

and liked it so much that he started a crab restaurant.

- What's your name? - Tyler.

And have you been preparing for a while for this?

Not very.

Donna's voice: All of it is, or was,

a whole population of 6,200.

There's a pretty big chicken industry,

a bunch of restaurants,

and a whole lot of money is made from summer tourism

on the water here.

( water splashes )

Barker: Good job! Who's next? Who's next?

- Me! Me! Me! - I wanna get dunked.

♪ Who's been playin' around with you? ♪

♪ A real cool cat with eyes of blue... ♪

Donna's voice: Oh, God. This is my first interview ever

I think I made him do this interview like four different times.

I think I even told him his hair dried fast

because he's bald.

- Yep, it does dry fast, yeah. - ( laughs )

So, I think we can show just about everybody

that comes on down a really good time.

Yeah. Cool.

I had no idea how culpable he was

for what was about to happen.

- ( water sloshing ) - ( police radio chattering )

Donna's voice: The first signs that something was very wrong

happened six weeks before July 4th.

It was on the news, but I don't think anybody

- and knew what was going on. - ( splashing )

Newscaster: The bodies of two scientists were found

in the Chesapeake Bay last night after having been

reported missing for more than 36 hours.

The cause of death was listed as unknown,

although medical examiners found numerous wounds on the body

that might be consistent with shark bites.

The two scientists were oceanographers

working to measure pollution levels in the bay.

Donna's voice: These were two oceanographers.

One from the Cousteau Institute

and another from the University of Maryland.

They were keeping a video diary of their research

and sending it to the Chesapeake Environmental Council.

Red algae here and here

does indicate bacterial growth.

Now Natural Resources,

they think it's feeding off the nutrients in the water

from the chicken runoff.

- That's a strange attack. - Yes, it is.

Anchor: You don't hear about shark attacks in the bay, normally.

Anchor #2: Well, I think bull sharks can be aggressive.

- a couple of attacks last year, maybe? - Here and there.

- Anchor #2: Yeah. - It is brackish throughout the Chesapeake Bay

and bull sharks have been known

Anchor #2: I gotta tell ya. It makes me a little nervous.

We have a boat and go out in the bay all the time.

Sam: They got the results on the water analysis.

- Oh, yeah? - Yeah.

What do you have?

Uh, mercury levels way above standards,

polycyclic acids, OPs,

PCBs that haven't been legal in 20 years.

- ( camera clicking ) - Sam: Endocrine disruptors, pharmaceuticals,

Viagra, estrogen, DDT,

- trace amounts of GRDF. - Jacqueline: Phew.

I mean, pretty much you name it,

- it's in there. - ( police radio chattering )

I mean, looky here.

Naw.

( heavy accent ) This whole stream of toxin is following the current.

The what's following the what?

- You have a very thick accent sometimes. - Sam.

This whole stream of toxin is following the current.

- Yes. - Look. It's going next to this little town.

Claridge.

Claridge. ( clears throat )

Donna's voice: There were people who were concerned

With some of the townsfolk, it did cause arguments.

Your chicken plants are putting chicken shit in my bay...

- ( crowd protesting ) - ...and they're killing.

The important thing, Jerry--

Jerry? The important thing to understand

is that the EPA continues to test the bay.

- And it is really-- - ( clapping )

it's really their responsibility. It's their responsibility.

Man's voice: Each one of these sheds has

approximately 32,000 chickens in it each.

Those chickens eat about 10,000 pounds worth of food.

They do this all very mathematically.

You know, I don't care what people say about the bay.

I know it looks a little different,

but all our kids have grown up

in the water in the bay.

So I don't know what all the doom and gloom

is all about.

Man's voice: There's 45 million pounds of chicken shit

dumped into the bay each year.

I mean, look at that.

That is entirely chicken shit.

And over here.

Look how close we are to the water.

It's right there.

Chicken shit. Water.

Woman: We gotta have improvement in the economy.

We got to develop.

I say we develop the hell out of the bay.

And then we can pay to clean it up.

( cheering, clapping )

You know, a lot of people--

a lot of people-- gave me a hard time

when we put up the desalination plant.

With that desalination plant,

we increased the capacity

for poultry farming in the area.

Donna's voice: The desalination plant

filtered water from the bay

so that people could drink it

and use it for the chicken industry.

And everyone just assumed

it would take anything harmful out of the water.

Your lawns benefit from that.

We have pools that are in operation.

And last but not least,

I don't know about you,

but I think this is the best darn water

I've ever tasted.

( cheering, clapping )

Donna's voice: People were worried about the economy and the water,

but mostly that wasn't their focus.

They were just doing the American thing.

You know, trying to make a living,

dealing with their children, enjoying their lives.

And everything seemed

really pretty good.

( bell ringing )

Someone do something.

Do something!

( girl screaming )

What's going on?

Girl: Mommy!

( kids screaming )

- What's going on? - What happened?

Oh, my God.

Has anyone seen my husband?

What's happening to me?

Please help me.

I need my husband

and my kids.

I need to go to the hospital.

Someone needs to get me to the hospital.

Almost done. We should have a report

of who the winner is shortly.

I need to go to the hospital.

Someone needs to get me to the hospital.

Woman: I've never seen anything like that.

( clapping )

Ooh, are you getting that? Are you getting that?

He just vomited. Are you getting that?

( spectators groaning )

Donna: Oh, my gosh. Oh, my God.

It's okay-- miss, cut the cameras, please.

It's all right, Tiffany. You're almost done, sweetheart.

Danny, where are you?

This is a lens cap?

- Am I in frame? - Donna: Mm.

Donna's voice: This is Dr. Jack Abrams.

He was the head physician in the emergency waiting room

at Atlantic Hospital.

He would actually end up treating over 350 patients

over the course of that day.

And he would die later that night.

Abrams: Could you take off your shirt, please?

Just-- can you-- turn around a little bit more?

I'm just gonna point this out to the camera.

Operator: CDC. Is this an emergency?

- Abrams: Yes, it is. - Are you a health professional?

- A doctor. - Okay. Hold, please.

- CDC: Emergency operations. - Abrams: Yeah, hi.

This is Dr. Jack Abrams over at the Atlantic Hospital

- How can we help you today? - We're in the middle of some kind of bacterial outbreak.

This is Dr. Williams in Communicable Disease.

Uh, you believe you may have a bacterial case?

Abrams: Uh, not one. 30.

What?

I got 30 people in the waiting room

- at my hospital right now. - What are the symptoms?

The entire group has broken out in blisters, boils, lesions--

- Where? - Face, legs, neck, chest.

I got a woman whose entire backside is covered in boils.

- All right. When did this begin? - This morning.

Today.

What do you think it is?

I have no idea what it is.

I'm gonna walk you through a list of associated symptoms.

Okay. Okay.

I'm gonna ask you a couple more questions.

You been around any livestock? Agriculture?

- No. - Farm animals?

You spend a lot of time in the sun?

No, not really.

More than usual? Less than usual? Same?

Not really.

You know, it hurts

What concerns me is we've had a lot of people in today

who've had similar symptoms to that.

Frankly, that's why we're doing this.

If you wouldn't mind just looking right into the lens

and saying your name?

- My name is Lamya Jezek. - Abrams: Great.

What am I supposed to say?

I'm gonna ask you a couple questions.

Man: I didn't know it was a big deal.

I'm just asking to go through a drive-through.

Man #2: You're insane. You do this every day.

- Okay, Grandma. Okay. - It's like clockwork.

I'm sorry. Grab the food, you're out.

That's why it's a drive-through.

It's not a big deal. Just go through.

Can you do it?

Donna's voice: This is Officer Paul.

He's the one on the left.

He was actually the best man at Officer Jimson's wedding.

- ( siren blares ) - What is that?

- What is that? - They reported the first death

in Claridge at 12:42 PM.

Is he shot?

Jimson: Check his pulse.

Oh, gosh. I don't wanna do that.

( door closes )

He's dead.

I don't see any bullet holes, though.

All right. Central, this is SM 10-12.

We got a young white male

laid out on the corner of, uh,

Center and Hyde.

He's dead.

Go ahead and dispatch EMS as soon as you can.

- ( dispatch chattering ) - Is there anyone around?

( sirens blaring )

- Woman: Hi. - Hey.

- Huh? - Whoo.

What do you think, Andrew?

Oh, you like that foot.

We're gonna go to Claridge, see the fireworks, huh?

- Do you know what fireworks are? - ( laughs )

Donna's voice: This is Alex

and Stephanie Talmet.

He was a very young,

very successful dentist from Townsend.

And Stephanie, she grew up in Claridge

before becoming a big-shot lawyer in Baltimore.

We're gonna call them later and they're gonna meet us there.

- That's their baby. - Alex: You sure? They're gonna meet us?

Donna's voice: They rented a boat in Wilmington

to sail to Claridge for the fireworks.

Alex: All right. We're gonna get this motorboat going.

We ready for this?

( phone ringing )

( operator speaks )

( woman speaking )

( woman crying )

Operator: Where are you, ma'am?

Woman: My God. She's bleeding.

- Operator: Ma'am? - ( woman crying )

Woman: I just got my camera.

Operator: Can you tell me what your address is right now?

Woman: I'm in my home, I'm in my home.

Operator: And what street is your home on?

Woman: She's bleeding. You gotta send somebody, please.

Operator: Where is she bleeding from?

Woman: Just send help. Send somebody now.

Send somebody quick. Please.

114 Maple St. ( screaming )

( siren blaring )

Cameraman: Donna? Donna?

Hey, Donna. Come here.

Did anyone tell you what this was?

Do you know who's in there?

All right. Let's go.

Let's follow it.

( sirens blaring )

Dispatch: Hey, we got a situation over at the 9-1-1 Call Center.

And the system's about to go down.

We're just overloaded with calls.

Atlantic Hospital's overcrowded.

75 at St. Alban's Clinic.

Clinic on Dorsey? Check out all those people out on the curb.

Some sort of killer virus, they say.

You know? So, wash your hands

and keep your gloves on and whatnot.

Dispatch #2: I need you to respond from the west side.

Come up to Prince Street

and stop short of St. James

and check back to the south side.

That's the one showing the body was laying behind the yard.

At the address 123 St. James.

Hey, John.

Whew. Marla Spatafora.

- She got it bad. - ( door slams )

I mean, somebody really tore into her.

Bill and I found her over on the lawn.

Her guts were tore out.

- And her tongue cut off. - Her tongue was cut off?

Yeah.

I imagine it's a domestic.

Do we know anything about the husband?

A Jason Spatafora?

I am at the scene of the crime right now

with a man named Jerry.

He's a fisherman in the town.

And, um, you knew Ms. Sporafina, is that correct?

Spatafora.

I apologize.

They-- they sent us the wrong name.

She was a wonderful woman. Very calm, very quiet.

Does this go on in the town a lot?

Domestic violence cases?

- It just seems-- - I'm sorry, what?

Cameraman: Try it-- do that one more time.

Donna's voice: I thought I was following a murder story.

I was just going through the motions,

almost trying to imitate what I thought a reporter

should sound like.

No. ( scoffs )

Makes me cringe when I watch this now.

- Cameraman: All right, just do an ending-- - God, I feel bad.

I didn't seem too pushy, did I?

No, no, no.

You have to, like, pretend you don't feel anything

about the situation when you're a reporter.

But it's-- no, you did a good job.

You weren't overly emotional and you weren't too--

too much of a reporter with him. It was good.

- It was a good conversation. - All right.

Hey, hey.

Are you excited?

Stephanie: We're gonna go and see Grandma and Grandpa.

Yeah.

Very exciting.

You know what? We're not gonna say anything about Grandma's hair.

Where did he go?

Where's Daddy?

Oh, look at this.

I need you to look at this, okay?

Just-- just look at this.

It's like some kind of

blister or something.

Donna's voice: This girl-- Jennifer--

she was using FaceTime with her phone

to show a rash that suddenly broke out on her body.

- This stuff on my arms-- - Girl: Oh, my God, Jennifer.

- That's disgusting. - Look at my leg.

When we looked at her phone call list,

it turns out she was trying to stay in contact

with her friend throughout the entire day.

- Girl: Did you put something on it? - Nobody's answering.

It just goes straight to voicemail.

Girl: I know. Service is sucking ass.

Every time I watch these FaceTime videos,

it makes me feel sad.

My parents left like an hour ago.

I don't even know where they were going.

They didn't even tell me they were leaving.

They were just out the door

and they pulled out before I had a chance

to even say goodbye

or ask them where they were going.

- Does it hurt? - Yeah, it does really hurt.

Is this gonna be okay for the audio?

- Jacqueline: Yeah. - The rain on the--

- I think it's okay. - I'll speak loudly.

Um, okay. Hello.

That was very formal.

Okay, we have now seen one infected fish.

And we are going to be using this

borescope-- hello--

to go inside the fish's mouth

and see if it was an isolated incident or not.

Come with me.

Sam: Inside.

Okay, secure.

And okay.

This, everyone,

is parasite larvae.

Ew.

Jacqueline: Explain for them.

Uh, well,

a parasite larvae, it's, uh-- it's a creature

whose eggs are swallowed by fish

and then they hatch inside the belly.

It's fun stuff.

I've never really seen larvae like this, though.

I don't know where the parasites are coming from.

Cameraman: What'd he say?

I just heard on the car radio

that there was another murder.

- A second murder? - Yes.

Only 12 blocks from the murder

of Marla Spatafora this afternoon.

And now authorities are telling us

the body was found in a rather

mutilated condition.

And I believe police believe

that the husband could be involved in this.

Some reports, perhaps, of a history of abuse there.

Anchor #2: You can follow her throughout the day

by going to www.wvbr33news.com.

- Uh, sir. Channel 33-- - You are pushing your luck.

This could be a career-maker for her.

- What are the odds? - Unbelievable.

- Unbelievable. - Is she gonna be able to handle this?

I just had to show you these off-air comments.

I mean, they're wondering if I can handle this

and they're right. I'm chasing a murder mystery.

- A small town celebration. - Yeah. We're gonna do the parade.

- I'm from American University-- - You're out from college?

That's it, guys. Off the property.

I wasn't asking the right questions, and--

Now she's covering what's gonna be the biggest story of the year.

Donna: Sir, we do have press passes.

- Press passes-- - Cameraman: Oh, my God.

Oh, my God.

Donna's voice: Looking back, I just don't understand

how I still thought it was a murder case.

Donna: Jim, are you getting it?

Abrams: I can only assume

that whatever this is is going to continue

to eat away at the leg and at the knee

and probably move to the upper body

and into the gonads.

I think that what we're talking about here

are two separate strains of some kind of parasite.

Something that is literally eating its way

into the body from the outside.

Uh, there are lesions

and there's boils

and also there's something

eating its way out from inside.

What I need you to do

is figure out what the hell this is.

Interviewer: John, what is going on?

Stockman: Oh, man. You know--

- We've never had murders... - Well, you know--

...reported here in the city.

You know, actually, um...

I've been so busy

with the reelection and July 4th.

I mean, the sheriff office is--

I've made contact with them.

- It's not even labeled murder yet. - Yeah.

- It isn't. - Just an ongoing investigation.

- It's a totally open investigation, yeah. - Okay.

( button clicks )

All right, we're back. It's "Radio on the Bay."

George Khouri.

Uh, we've got our podcast 24-7,

all the updates, KhouriRadio.com.

Right now we're just gonna get right to it.

We've got our esteemed mayor, John Stockman.

He's got a very important announcement for the town,

so right now we're just gonna

turn it over to you, Your Honor.

- I really appreciate this opportunity. - Absolutely.

Stockman: There's a lot of rumors being spread.

And rumors can get you into nothing but trouble,

as we all know. So, let me give you

a little more clarity as to what's going on.

And we all know that during warm weather

bacteria levels can rise.

And because of that, sometimes there are those of us

who pick up some kind of digestive problems

It's unfortunate, but it's a fact of life here on the bay.

However--

and I hope everyone is paying attention to this--

let's not go around scaring one another

with crazy and outlandish stories

that serve no one's benefit.

So, and I can't stress this enough,

if you have a sensitivity to that type of bacteria,

or if you just want to take special precautions,

you can limit your time in the water today.

The bacteria level here is much, much higher

than even the high level we see after a storm,

and the fertilizer from the farm

- run into the water. - You're rushing on the fertilizer.

- Slow down on that. - Okay.

And the fertilizer from the farm

are running to the water.

Um...

It's, uh-- not good at all.

It's very, very high.

Yeah, that ending is kind of sloppy on that.

Stockman: And if I have any information,

and I do mean to stress this,

if I have any information that would alter those facts--

and I say facts--

I'll be right back here talking to you again.

And Khouri and everyone out there,

I just want to wish you the happiest of 4th of Julys.

Thanks again.

( man whistles ) There he is.

- There he is. - Oh, yeah!

- Man #2: Who's buying dinner? - ( man laughs )

Woman: Let's see it, let's see it.

Man #2: That's so big, I don't think he fits in this boat.

- ( shutter clicking ) - There you go, huh? Nice.

- That's not right, Danny. - Look at that, Brad, huh?

- Man #2: That thing's huge. - Brad: That's not right.

It is right. Look at that thing.

Danny, you ever see anything like that?

What is that?

- I've never seen nothing like that. - What the heck is it?

Ow! Son of a bitch!

- What the-- - ( screaming )

Get it-- get off of me!

Woman: What is that?

- Step back! - Move away!

Man #2: That thing bit me.

Brad: Holy shit, that thing is nasty.

All right. Welcome back. "Radio on the Bay."

It's George Khouri. We are live on the air,

and of course 24-7, we got our podcasts.

You can grab 'em. RadioKhouri.com.

Now there's a lot of speculation, a lot of phone calls coming in.

People not quite sure what to make of this,

but theories do abound, my friends.

Maybe a satanic cult has invaded the town.

There's drugs loose in the air.

We've got theories running wild.

Caller: I think it's al-Qaeda, or whatever it's called.

It's a terrorist plot to poison the food supply.

Caller #2: Gathering a lot of information about the flu shots

Caller #4: I saw this strange cloud.

It was hovering over the water down by the bay.

It was this very circular shape--

Caller #5: Biological warfare. Um, Iran,

and they're probably trying to get people out of Guantanamo.

Caller #6: I bet everybody's gonna say it's about global warming.

I still can't get them. It's going to voicemail.

Alex: Well...

We said we'd meet them at the pier.

That's what we'll do. We'll meet them at the pier.

- Okay. - That's the plan. We'll just...

do that.

Jacqueline: Okay, we have some more dead fish here.

- All mutilated. - Sam: What?

- All mutilated. - Oh, mutilated.

We have-- here, we have-- the tongue is missing on these.

- No tongue? - And on these others,

the flesh looks almost like it's been bitten.

- It's very confusing. - Why is that?

( Jacqueline sighs ) I'm not sure what does this.

Um, fish don't bite fish.

There she is.

- Come on, let me film you. - No, no, no, no, no.

- Yeah, yeah, yeah. - Oh, God.

I don't wanna end up on the Internet.

Girl: Come on. It's not like I'm gonna put you naked on my Facebook page

- and see what the comments are. - ( laughs )

Well, I might, actually. Now that I think about it.

Who knows? I could end up being a pretty big star.

Uh-huh. Sure. A big star. Whatever.

Donna's voice: This was Denise Button's digital camera.

She was a star pitcher for the softball team.

A little shirt off.

- Denise: Um, I don't think so. - Let me see this.

- Aw, come on. - Why do you want me to do that?

'Cause I wanna see how beautiful you are.

- You already know. - ( laughs )

You know my mom doesn't like us being together in the first place,

so why would I do something even worse?

Because you like me.

All right, but you better come in with me.

You're coming in, no doubt about it.

Whoa. ( laughs )

You better come in after me.

Whoo-hoo!

- How's it feel? - Awesome. Come on!

- No. Mm-mm. - Come on, baby.

Naw, that's okay. I think you can just get stung by the jellyfish.

What? ( screams )

Oh, ha ha. Very funny.

No, there's seriously something in the-- ow!

You're not getting to me.

( screaming )

You're just jeal-- are you okay?

( screaming continues )

Donna's voice: That camera was apparently found a month later

by a 12-year-old on the shore.

Their bodies were never discovered.

( wind blowing )

Samantha: It's so pretty here.

- Alex: Isn't it? - ( Samantha chuckles )

( kissing ) Hey.

Behind you. It's like a sign.

- Oh, is it? - Yeah.

It's a sign you wanna make a little love?

( laughs ) Knock it off. It's not a sex sign.

Oh, well. It is to me.

- It is a sex sign to me. - No, everything is--

Hi.

Come on. It just helps it a little bit.

Donna's voice: Sometimes when I watch this footage,

this private footage--

They're being playful. They're loving one another.

And they have no idea that something so much darker

and sinister is about to happen.

- ...you get in the mood? - Oh, definitely.

Oh, my God. Oh, my God. What are you doing?

There we go. Let's just cool off a little.

Oh, my God. Alex, Alex, Alex.

- The camera. Put me down. - Oh, the camera, the camera.

- Asshole. - Ouch!

( laughing )

- Serves you right. - Wow.

( spits ) Wow, it tastes--

How does it feel in there?

( coughs ) Some went in my mouth.

- Oh, you're coming in at some point. - Looks so good.

You know that, don't you?

Look at you, up there on your high boat.

Jacqueline: About a hundred years ago, the sea floor was entirely grass bed,

with enough oysters to self-clean about every four days.

Today, the bay is 40% dead zone.

There's nothing here.

Sam: Wait, I don't understand. Are you saying that 40%

- of the bay is a dead zone? - Is good? Is okay?

No, no. It's not clear that 40% is dead.

( P.A. system chattering )

Dr. Abrams.

The CDC is on the line.

They're on right now?

Can you get somebody to get an orderly?

Get that guy out of the hall.

Put him in 104.

Well? Well?

Uh, yeah. You said that you have 30 of these--

I have about 60 people

with some kind of blister and lesion outbreak.

- I have wart overgrowth-- - Excuse me, you said now you have 60 cases?

I just saw three people with their tongues half gone.

Okay, that's a lot of information.

Did you administer methicillin to the lesion victims?

Abrams: Of course I gave them methicillin. It had no response.

- What do you mean? - It kept spreading.

- In how many cases? - In all of the cases.

Okay, that's important.

Yeah, I know that's important because they still have

Do you have any new information for me?

Not at this time.

This could be any number of things.

It could be fungal or bacterial.

- Fungal? - We had a tropical fungus outbreak

last year in Vancouver.

Spread in about three hours, actually.

Vancouver? Three hours?

Yeah.

With, uh, about 30--

we lost-- about 30 people died, I think.

But it was just the fact that

we hadn't seen it in the northern hemisphere before.

Now, I did wanna ask you.

Did you say that you had people

with half their tongues gone?

Uh, yeah. Hold on. You didn't get pictures?

Did you send those pictures to the CDC?

You did?

You should have an attachment with pictures we sent you.

Do you have them?

Okay.

Okay, we're coming to you

from the straits at Claridge,

where we think we have found--

dun-dun-dun--

- the culprit. - ( thunder crashes )

Let's go take a look inside the laboratory here.

See what we got.

As you can see here, we have these parasites

that seem to have latched onto the gills.

( Jacqueline gasps ) Oh, my God.

- This is disgusting. - Right here.

You get it?

There.

This is called

an isopod right here.

It's one of the world's oldest creatures.

Dates back from the Carboniferous period.

Here.

- Look at that. - What is that?

- ( gasps ) - Look at that.

It ate right through the fish's tongue.

This is enormous.

Do you think this is an anomaly?

Do I think it's-- "omelee"? What?

No, do you think it's normal?

Oh, anomaly.

I think it's-- it must be some kind of mutated version.

Isopods shouldn't even be in the brackish water.

This is a huge one.

( groans ) Look at this.

All these isopods are eating this fish alive.

I don't understand this.

This doesn't make any sense.

Man: What is it?

( groaning )

It aches.

The pain in my--

there's something really wrong.

Help me.

( panicked chattering )

Girl: What's happening?

I think-- I think you need to see this.

- What's that noise? - Look how many people are here.

- Oh, my God. - Look at this.

- Look. - What's wrong with everyone?

- Look at all these people. - That's Mr. Long.

Jennifer: They need help.

( all clamoring )

( loud thump )

Did-- did you just hear that?

Look. Look at this.

Look at this. Look.

- Somebody help me! - Jennifer: Please, please. Somebody.

Woman: They were just there for a car show.

Within 24 hours, he got ill.

And they said with this parasite,

that is what happens.

Reporter: Only his feet touched the water,

but a short time later, he became sick.

Doctors say he was infected by a bacteria

called Vibrio vulnificus.

If he'd survived, he would've lost

his arms and legs.

When walking through brackish water or at the beach,

if you get a cut, don't just think it's gonna go away.

You have to seek medical attention immediately

if it starts to turn red or you start to feel really bad.

Reporter: The Vibrio vulnificus bacteria

can lead to heart failure, loss of limbs, or death.

All right, this is the leg of a man treated today

at Atlantic Hospital in Maryland.

This is the IR slide of the same infection.

Notice the bruising below the skin.

It looks like Vibrio vulnificus.

Now, it's a bit different than the normal symptoms of a vibrio

or a Cryptosporidium outbreak.

And we got people up there with their tongues half gone.

So, what have we got here, people?

Stephanie, where are you? You're not answering your phone.

I've been trying to reach you.

I'm at the hospital.

Your dad is at the hospital.

They're taking him in. He has some kind of very bad infection.

And I think they're going to amputate his leg.

It's crazy here.

I mean, really crazy here.

So the most important thing is to know

that I do not want you to get off that boat.

Do you hear me, Stephanie?

Don't get off the boat.

- Alex: Hey, Stephanie. - What?

Stephanie's mother: And there is something else I want you to know.

Alex: Look at this boat. It's just adrift.

- Alex: Grab this camera. - I have lesions.

Stephanie's mother: I think a lot of people here are not gonna make it.

I'm gonna come up over-- here it comes.

But remember, I love you,

and I will try to call again.

Alex: There's nobody in it.

Hey, you see anyone in the water?

I don't think we can rule out a food-borne virus

or anything airborne,

but this looks like a water vector.

I agree. The blistering looks like echinococcosis.

The lesions could be

Mycobacterium marinum

or schistosomiasis.

I mean, Jesus, there could be cholera in there.

Yeah, but I don't see it spreading this fast.

If the water's being polluted with anything chemical

on top of the bacteria, we could easily

be looking at a new form evolve.

Maybe a fungal bacteria,

maybe a mutated tapeworm. Who knows?

I need labs back in two.

I need labs back in two. I need Prolix and I need morphine.

- Somebody call Materials Management-- - Dr. Abrams.

- I need 4x8-- - Dr. Abrams.

- What? - It's the fellow you amputated.

- What about him? - It's on the other leg.

- What? - It's on the other leg.

Christ. I need morphine in two

and I need labs back. I need labs back STAT.

CDC operator: I have EPA on the line.

What the hell's going on at the Chesapeake Bay?

What are you talking about?

Is there anything in there that could cause disease,

bacterial outbreak, or mutations?

Well, the bay has been found to have pollutants,

algae, agricultural runoff,

chicken excrement, um...

Go on.

There was a small leak from a nuclear reactor in 2002.

- God damn it. - But we weren't expecting it to hit the bay

till 2014.

But it is coming through the ground,

so it could've hit earlier.

Are people drinking this water?

Of course not. The bay is brackish. You can't drink it.

There is a level of seepage into local wells

and of course the desalination plant in Claridge.

Stockman: With that desalination plant,

we have increased the capacity

for poultry farming in the area.

Those chickens drink about

2,000 gallons of water a day.

I think the NEF said it was 0.3 liters of dirty water,

so there could be radium or tritium in there.

Sam's voice: ...endocrine disruptors, pharmaceuticals...

EPA: Algae, agricultural runoff, chicken excrement...

There was a small leak from a nuclear reactor in 2002...

And you don't warn anyone?

Well, it's not under our regulations

to test for radioactivity levels in water.

Look-- half the water in America probably has some leaks in it.

Don't you regulate the water?

The filtered water has met all regulatory standards.

- That dome over there... - Activist: 5 million pounds of chicken shit

dumped into the bay each year.

This is the best darn water I've ever tasted.

( saw buzzing )

Donna: What are you doing? Let's go back this way.

- Jim: Just hold on. - What are you doing?

I can't-- I'm burning up.

Let me just put some water on my face.

Jesus.

Donna's voice: That's my cameraman, Jim Hoyt.

- Hey, Katie Couric. - Donna's voice: Um...

Can you just chill the fuck out for two seconds?

I think that's the only time we actually ever see him.

- That's not an insult. I like her. - He died that night.

- Jim: I know you do. - A lot of this footage

is thanks to him.

Man on phone: Governor's office.

Abrams: Yeah, hi. This is Dr. Jack Abrams.

I'm at the Atlantic Hospital in Claridge.

I need to speak to the governor immediately.

Man: The governor is away from his desk.

Jennifer: I don't understand how the nurses

are just hurrying by and they're not even stopping.

Look at that. She didn't even stop.

- Man: Look, I am. - There are like 20 feet in front of us.

- Woman: Jesus. - Daughter: Dad!

- ( honks horn ) - Stop honking the horn!

- Please stop texting. - I'm not texting.

Daughter: Oh, my God. She just said "YouTubeing."

Abrams: We're having an outbreak of some kind here.

A medical outbreak down here in Claridge.

People are dying here.

I have been speaking to the CDC

They are moving at a snail's pace--

- as soon as he gets back. - What do you mean, you have it?

Well, go. Go out there and document everybody that you see.

Don't document me. Don't waste the damn film.

Donna's voice: Nobody ever got off that bridge.

It was shut down for three days, actually.

Um...

I did a lot of research.

There's no record of who ordered it shut down.

Alex: I got it on autopilot.

- Oh, good. - Yeah.

- GPS is amazing. - Oh, yeah?

- Yeah, well-- - They said take the next right, though.

And I don't know what they're referring to.

- Just go around in circles. - That's fine by me.

Jim: You know, we don't have to be here.

They're not gonna post any of this.

The FBI are not gonna allow it.

Donna: Well, there's a little something called the First Amendment.

- Is it rolling? - Yeah, we're rolling.

Good evening.

This is Donna Thompson reporting from what used to be

the fairgrounds of the July 4th party--

( man yelling, moaning )

- Did you hear that? - Yeah, what was it?

What the fuck is that?

- ( people screaming ) - ( microphone drops )

I'm sorry, I'm sorry.

( woman screaming )

Man over computer: You say you were hearing these screams

all across-- ( transmission scatters )

I'm sorry. The Skype broke up a little bit.

What did you say?

Just echoing through the air?

I mean, all different directions?

Oh, yeah. I mean, there--

it was very faint, but it was very,

um, prominent.

I heard them coming from here.

I've heard them coming from there.

It was far away, but...

it was very ghostlike.

You know, I--

And the pain in the people's voices, I could hear them.

They were like cries or--

like cries for help.

But you didn't know where anyone was?

No. I had no idea where anybody was.

Dispatch: Be advised. Need you to respond

to the corner of St. James and Highmarket.

We just got a phone call in reference to

hearing some screaming or some type of

loud verbal noises from across the street.

( siren blaring )

You think it's, like, a group or one person?

- I don't know. - Like, maybe one of those cults, you know?

Like they were talking about on the radio?

I don't know.

All right.

Stay here and keep your eyes out, huh?

- ( woman screaming ) - Man: What was that?

( man screaming )

Did you hear that?

( baby crying )

( knocks on door )

Jimson: Police, open up.

( continues knocking )

Police, open up.

I'm gonna go in.

Hello?

Hello?

This is Donna Thompson reporting from what used to be

- the fairgrounds of the July 4th party. - ( screaming continues )

Um, at the moment, we are not quite sure what's going on.

( Jimson screams over radio )

( gunshots echo )

Paul on radio: Central, this is SM 10-12.

Be advised, shots fired,

shots fired at 352 St. James Street.

Send assistance immediately.

( door slams )

Central, advise. Did you copy?

Central, please advise. Do you copy?

Send backup. A shot has been fired

- Jim? - at 352 St. James Street.

- Central, be advised-- - Jim, are you in there?

I don't know if anyone's listening there.

I'm gonna enter the premises now.

SM 10-18 is currently inside.

- Please send backup. - Jim?

Jim!

I'm coming in! I'm coming in!

- Paul: Oh, my God. What's this? - Man: Please!

What are you doing?

Jim: They're all dying, they're all dying. Look at them all.

Paul: No way. What have you done, Jim?

Oh, my God.

I don't know-- I don't know what they are.

- What is on those people? - I don't know what it is.

It's crawling on their bodies.

( man screaming )

Let's get out of here!

- ( man moaning ) - Did you cut it off?

Paul: You can't do this.

You can't do this! Oh, my God!

Get it off, get it off!

( screaming )

( gunshot )

Jim, wait.

Jim, no, no, no, no! It's me, Paul.

( gunshot )

This is Cessna 1-5-7.

Man: Go ahead, Cessna 1-5-7.

Cessna 1-5-7: I'm just trying to figure out what the hell's going on.

I know they shut down all the roads going into Claridge,

but now I'm flying over the water here

and there's just, like, a shitload

of dead fish everywhere.

Man: Did you say "dead fish"?

Cessna 157: I don't know how many, but, um...

it goes as far as I can see.

So you just got this?

CDC staffer: Yeah, from a research professor

at the University of Maryland.

And this, uh, Cymothoa exigua?

Do we have any information on this?

Sacerdoti: Yeah, the exigua is a crustaceous isopod

normally found in the Pacific.

It's been making a number of appearances in the Atlantic.

Last year, they found a two-and-a-half-foot one

trying to burrow its way into a submarine.

The thing thought it was a dead whale.

( scoffs ) Are you making this up? This looks Photoshopped.

No, it's real.

So, how's that getting into the water supply?

Sacerdoti: Well, at normal scale, they're quite common.

The fishermen call them "sea lice."

Yeah, but, I mean, it's this big.

How's it gonna get through a filtration system?

Well, what about the larvae?

All right, now we're bringing up more questions than we can answer.

We gotta find out what happened to those two divers.

Yeah?

Let's go.

Okay, here we are.

We got a nice break in the weather.

So, we're gonna go catch the current out to Claridge,

take an up-close, personal look at these parasites.

See what we're dealing with.

See, you take a look around,

it's beautiful. It's breathtaking.

One of the most beautiful estuaries in all of America.

You'd have no idea what's underneath.

How was that? Was that not very good at all?

- Jacqueline: Great. - What?

( laughs )

- That was very good. - Okay, one more time.

A little crisper.

I feel like I'm sitting very strangely.

Do people sit like this? Okay.

Now bring the camera to me.

I'm gonna get us some beauty shots here.

Get a sense of place here.

You wanna see the vista, here, and the sun.

Beautiful water.

Beautiful, placid water.

You have no sense of how the ecosystem's

actually being affected.

You have no idea of the nightmare underneath here.

( splashing )

Take an up close and personal look at these parasites.

See what we're actually dealing with.

We'll go take a look ourselves.

( breathing )

( muffled screams )

Donna's voice: You can see in this footage

that the oceanographers dove right into a school

of fully-grown isopods.

This is not the sea lice variety

or the larvae.

This is what killed them.

And what killed those young teenagers.

The question we continue to ask is,

did the authorities not look at this footage?

Or chose not to reveal it?

Donna: Jim?

Jim?

Do you hear that?

( faint music playing )

I hear something.

( faint moaning )

Jim: Yeah, I hear it.

( whispers ) It's this way.

( moaning intensifies )

Do you fucking hear that?

It's like a moaning or something.

Can you come closer?

( screaming )

Oh, my God! Oh, my God!

Donna: Oh!

( wheezing )

What do I need to do, Doctor?

What do I need to do?

Well, I would suggest that

you and your staff leave the hospital.

My staff left 20 minutes ago.

Well, good. That's wise.

Wise? That's-- why is that wise?

Well, because the bacteria--

uh, the-- once it's entered the human body--

it's a miracle you aren't infected already, as a matter of fact.

- I'm-- I'm fine. - Well, that's good.

But what I'm saying is that,

at this point, it is too late, Doctor.

And I strongly suggest that you leave immediately.

Look, I have people in pain here.

I'm amputating feet, I'm amputating legs,

I'm amputating arms. You want me to get up

- and just leave the hospital? - Yes, we're aware of that,

Doctor, and we are sorry.

You need to get-- you need to get somewhere.

But don't come here 'cause they're not gonna help you.

And they're not helping me.

It looks like there are dead bodies up there.

- Dead people. They're not breathing. - How can people be dead?

They just collapsed and no one's coming out to get them.

- Nothing. Nope. No one. - And no one's helping?

Jennifer, is your tongue hurting?

Mine hurts so badly.

I'm just-- I'm really scared.

I don't know what to do.

I just-- I don't wanna hang up.

I don't wanna be by myself.

I can't get anyone--

Stephanie: Can you see my parents? Are they here?

There's a bunch of dead shit in the water.

- Stephanie: Whoa. - What is that stuff?

That is weird.

Sheriff: Have you heard anything from the governor yet?

Stockman on radio: Yes, Lee. I talked to him.

The governor wanted to know if we should call

And I told him to give us a few more hours

Some of the folks have nothing wrong with them, for heaven's sake.

And the CDC doesn't even know if it's contagious.

- We've got the National Guard isolating us... - ( man screaming )

...from surrounding communities as a preventative measure.

If we get people in here with those hazmat suits,

all hell's gonna break loose.

Now listen, Lee. Right now we've got no media on this

except that student running around with a camera.

And the FBI shut down her blog.

And, Lee, you and your deputies

have got to get on top of this.

Sheriff: I lost all contact with my deputies

about 30 minutes ago.

Stockman: What?

I'm not getting any response from my guys.

( groans ) Well, we shut down all the towers

to kill the cell phones,

but it shouldn't affect you guys.

Why don't you swing by and pick me up right now?

I wanna get a firsthand look at what's going on out there.

All right, I'll be by there in about five minutes.

Jim: You okay?

I don't think I've ever been so scared in my whole life.

Is the blood off my face?

- What? - Is the blood off my face?

No, you've got a ton on your side.

What the--

- Donna: What? - What is that?

Donna: What is it?

Jim: Holy shit.

- Donna: Fuck. - What the fuck?

- Donna: Oh. - Oh, my God.

- ( Donna gasping ) - Look at his face.

- Donna: Oh, my God. - Jim: Look at his face.

( Donna screaming )

Donna's voice: Oh, my God.

Look at me, I was running in a circle.

I mean, if it wasn't--

if this wasn't a tragedy situation,

it would actually be somewhat comedic.

Um...

I was just so fucking scared.

I-- I never reported another thing after that

until I made this film.

I...

( sighs )

That was actually the last footage we shot.

Alex: Well, I'll come and get the rest of the stuff

when we figure out where we're going.

( scoffs )

Where are you leading us other than off of this dock?

Alex, where do you think? I have no idea.

I can't get a hold of them.

This is quite a greeting, isn't it?

- Oh, come on. - This is pretty nice.

You know, would you please--

- it's-- - All documented.

This is the quietest 4th of July I have ever seen.

We missed the fireworks? What the hell's going on?

Yeah, what's with that?

Is it necessary to get video of this?

Yes, I am filming the lack of fireworks

so we can show your parents we were here

- for the nonfestivities. - Oh, great. You know, they'll...

Donna's voice: When Alex and Stephanie got to Claridge,

more than 700 people had died.

And here they were, coming in with a baby.

Alex: ...this celebration for 4th of July.

if you would turn the damn camera off and help me look for them,

that might be a little more useful.

Oh, you're doing great. You're doing just--

- This is fantastic. I love it when you... - This is ridiculous.

make me be the grown-up and you don't do any of the work.

- They all look-- - What the hell is that?

Stephanie: Oh, my God.

Alex: Oh, God.

- Alex, Alex-- - Holy shit.

- Stephanie: I wanna get out of here. - Oh, my God.

- Look at this. - Do not get any closer.

- I want to get out of here-- - Where are we gonna go?

I don't wanna be out here with a dead body and Andrew here--

- Aw, Jesus. - Stop.

- No, just-- - Get away from-- don't touch her.

Yes, of course. A toxic soup of chemicals

could produce certain mutations.

What's also concerning is the level

of chicken excrement in the bay.

I mean, if the numbers you gave me are correct,

the amount of steroids in that amount of manure,

um, could be accelerating growth

by 50, 60 times.

That's both in size and quantity.

This stuff has so much chemical steroid in it,

it will take a little birdie, turn it into a fullgrown birdie

in 42 days, what Mother Nature would take six months.

They think it's feeding off the nutrients from the chicken runoff.

We've noticed a five-to-one

female-to-male ratio among these fish here.

We could easily be looking at a new form evolve.

- Ow! Son of a bitch! - ( screaming )

Must be some kind of mutated version.

Isopods shouldn't even be in the brackish water.

I would like to give Buzz

a big round of applause

for getting these misters going.

( clapping, cheering )

Are people drinking this water?

Some went in my mouth. ( coughs )

How's it gonna get through a filtration system?

What about the larvae?

The desalination plant in Claridge...

( voices overlapping ) A new form evolve... Steroids...

So much chemical steroid... Mutated version...

They found a two-and-a-half-foot one

trying to burrow its way into a submarine...

Jane? Jane.

Get me...

Will you get me the White House?

Stephanie: Oh, my God.

- Alex: Oh, my God. - Careful, please.

Oh, you're kidding me. Holy shit.

- Oh, my God. - What the fuck?

- ( doors slam ) - Stephanie: Oh, my God.

Alex: Where the hell are we?

Donna's voice: Apparently, a lot of people came up to Main Street.

And they were just waiting for an EMS

or an ambulance or someone to come by.

- Alex, I wanna go. - Where do you want to go?

They were just waiting and hoping.

Are we gonna get back on the boat in the middle of the night without any gas?

Stephanie: I wanna call the police.

Alex: You just told me that there's no cell phone service.

- You just told me that. - Can we go someplace where we have service

- so we can call the police? - Look, look.

This place is open.

- Will you look inside-- - Let's just go in here and regroup.

- Are you okay? - Yeah, yeah.

Come on.

- Oh, my God. - Oh, shit.

Um, here. Let's set this stuff down.

- Where? - How is Andrew?

He's fine. He's sleeping.

Stephanie: Well, this couldn't be creepier.

- Can we make sure there are no more dead people in here? - Yes.

I'll make sure they're not.

Okay.

No, this is good.

This is good. Let's stay here.

I'm gonna see if I can find a landline.

Maybe I can get one to work.

Okay. I'm gonna go out

and see if I see anyone on the street at all.

Cops, something.

- Stockman: We'll find 'em. - Sheriff: Find 'em?

Stockman: We'll find 'em.

Nothing's happened. We just-- we just--

have some deputies off radio.

You know, if I find these guys are playing a joke on me...

Well, they're fired.

Sheriff: I've never had this happen.

Sheriff: I'm gonna make the next town meeting, I can tell you that.

- We're gonna have to get some-- - Come on, Lee.

- ( beeping ) - That's the last thing we need right now.

- What's that? - Put your seatbelt on.

Oh, Jesus.

You're riding in a police car.

Yeah, I'm worried about my seat belt.

That's what I'm worried about, right?

Stockman: Whose car?

Sheriff: I think that's Jimson's car.

- I can't be for sure. - Is that him in the car?

I don't know.

- Whose house is this? - What the hell is he doing, Lee?

- Now, wait a minute. - I had to kill 'em.

That's Jim.

- What's wrong with him? - What's wrong with him?

He looks like he's done something.

- Is he drunk? - He's got his gun out.

- Go away! - What's the matter, Jim?

Come here, buddy!

Come here!

Stockman: Something's wrong with his face.

- Oh, God, he's got-- - Oh, Christ.

- Go away! - Jim?

- Go away! - Come on, Jim.

- Just chill out, buddy! - Just go!

Come on!

Come on and get in the back of the car.

Get in the back of the car, Jim.

I'll take you to the hospital.

- Come on, we'll take you somewhere. - Just go!

Come on, bud.

Don't let me lose you, Jim. Come on, now.

We're all gonna die.

- We're all gonna die. - Oh, God.

- I don't wanna die like this. - It's okay, buddy.

- I'm coming to get you! - No, Lee. Lee, stay.

- No, no, no, no. - Let him go, Lee.

No, no, no. We gotta get him somewhere.

- You stay here. - Lee, for God's sake.

- Jim. - They're eating my flesh.

- Let's go somewhere. Come on. - We're all gonna die.

- Come on. Hey, what's that? - We shouldn't have to die like this.

Huh?

No, you're not gonna die. Nobody's gonna die.

Get in the car.

You don't have to die like this, sir.

I can't touch you, but get in the car.

Jim, now, wait a minute.

No, Deputy! Put that gun down!

Bill, just hang on for a second.

I'm gonna go and get Alex.

Okay? Don't go anywhere.

Alex. Alex?

I got Bill on the Skype.

- Bill, can you hear me? - Yeah, what's going on?

Okay, we came to Claridge

- And, um-- - Where are you, at an antique store or something?

There are these-- there are dead bodies

- everywhere, Bill. - What?

- And-- - Bill, the entire town is covered

- in dead fucking bodies. - Oh, yeah. Okay.

That's a good one. All right.

- Bill, please! - What, are you guys serious?

Yeah, we are entirely fucking serious here, Bill.

Oh, okay. Call the cops, guys.

No, we called the cops. We can't get through to them.

We can't get through to my parents.

Our cell phones aren't working. We can't get service.

We need for you to do something.

Okay, all right. Where are you?

Claridge.

- Claridge? - Claridge.

- Call somebody, anybody. - All right, hey.

Just get us some help here, please.

Tell me, what happened to you?

We don't know what happened.

I mean, what is that on your neck?

What's on my neck?

- Oh, my God, Alex. - What is it?

Alex: Oh, holy shit.

My name is Dr. Jack Abrams.

I am a physician at the Atlantic Hospital

in Maryland.

I'm making this video in the hope that

I will be able to watch it at some point in the future,

and I'm gonna show the world what happened here.

Uh, coming out into the hall now...

I locked myself in the ICU for...

The CDC stopped taking my phone calls.

Contacted FEMA. Help hasn't arrived.

I think I now know what is killing people.

We were looking for some kind of virus,

some kind of viral outbreak.

And when we called CDC, they needed to send

a fucking army down here to put some goddamn minds together

to find what I know now,

which is this is not a virus. This is an organism.

It is an organism that has somehow

infiltrated these people's bodies.

The blistering-- that's a symptom.

It is not--

that is what-- that is what threw us off.

It is the isopod.

It's eating their organs.

It's-- it's-- it's literally eating them from the inside.

It is eating their intestines,

it is eating their liver. It goes for kidneys,

lungs, tissue.

This is a rapidly growing, accelerating organism.

How it's growing this fast, I have no idea.

Um, I noticed this rash about 45 minutes ago.

And I'm gonna continue to take the camera

and I'm gonna document everything that I see here.

If you find this tape, just please get it out.

( isopods chirping )

Get it out.

( siren blaring )

( car stalls )

( Alex choking, vomiting )

Alex? Alex, Jesus!

- Alex? - Stephanie, would you please talk to me?

- What's happening? - What's wrong?

Talk to me. What's wrong?

- Alex? - There's something crawling

inside of my stomach.

- ( retches ) - Alex.

Please explain to me what's going on.

- Okay. - ( helicopter approaching )

- They're coming, they're coming. - I can't--

They're gonna come. Help is here, okay?

You're okay. You're gonna be fine.

- It hurts. - I know, darling.

I know it hurts, but we gotta get you outside.

No!

I'm in too much pain. I can't handle it.

- Alex-- no. - Take it, take it!

What's wrong with you? Come on!

- Please. It's too much. - No.

- Help me. - Alex, come on.

Help. Finish--

- ( Stephanie screaming ) - ( flesh squelching )

Donna's voice: Alex died at 1:26 AM.

The larvae he swallowed in the bay

had grown into a full-sized parasite

in eight hours from the toxic soup.

( Stephanie crying )

Hi, this is Steve Slattery over at Homeland Security.

I just wanted to get back to you

on that message about Chesapeake Bay.

Yeah? And?

Slattery: Yeah, uh-- turns out

we did hear something a few weeks back

about a couple divers' bodies

being found in the water. Natural Resources Police

thought it was a bull shark bite.

And they were getting ready to pull people out of the water

and put up a shark alert,

but a medical examiner determined

that it was not a shark bite at all.

They weren't sure, so they sent reports over to us,

and then we sent them over to the Coast Guard

and they said it didn't make any sense to them,

so then we sent it to FEMA and they never responded,

so I figured we'd send it to you.

Yeah, that's good.

Williams: What did the report say?

Slattery: Well, uh...

kinda strange stuff. It said the cause of death was

"undetermined due to a multiplicity of parasites

and a variety of infections."

Do you want a copy of this report?

Williams: Oh, yeah.

Funny enough, I would love to see a copy of that report.

- Here we are, baby. - ( baby crying )

Williams: So let me get this straight.

Two divers are found with a bunch of holes in them

and all that we know is that they're mysteriously being eaten

by parasites and infections.

Williams: Nobody knows what happened and it takes 16 days

to get this information to us?

Slattery: Listen, we set up an incident center

without cause and we're in deep doo-doo here.

Williams: Really? Well, I've got a town full of dead bodies.

Slattery: A small town. I think we need to

keep this whole thing in perspective here.

Williams: What kind of perspective are you talking about?

( screaming )

( muffled ) Help me! Help me!

Get off of me!

Get off of me!

( baby continues crying )

Slattery: Listen, it's not that easy to pull the trigger on something like this.

We-- ( sighs )

we blow up a nonissue and shut down the entire Chesapeake Bay--

I mean, we're talking about beaches, restaurants, vacation fishing.

The public panics if word gets out we're setting up an incident center

about a spreading disease or for a spreading disease.

You don't just shut down the Eastern Seaboard without approval

from a higher authority.

Great, I understand. Thank you very much, Officer Slattery.

That's it?

Okay. Thanks.

Donna's voice: Um, then at about 5:30,

they came in the hazmat suits,

and then they quarantined the town for another three days

and that was when they confiscated

every single camera they could find.

You know, there were those who survived,

and for some reason, they never became sick.

Uh, the town as a whole

reached a financial agreement with the government.

I don't know how much money changed hands,

but I do know that silence was part of the agreement.

I tried to reach out to people like Stephanie,

but she didn't want to participate in this film.

Oh, and by the way.

The official line from the government

was that the outbreak was due to

unseasonably high water temperatures.

This is Donna Thompson...

signing off.

( music playing )