Esquimalt teen on softball team dies after strep infection
The death of a 13-year-old Esquimalt girl who was suffering from an invasive streptococcal infection has sent shock waves through the Island’s softball community.
Robin Carey, who died March 23, was a rising star in the Victoria Devils Fastball Club.
“It’s shock and disbelief,” said Robin’s coach, Luc Fournier.
The Rockheights Middle School student was too sick to attend a softball practice on March 16, but was present at the next day’s practice, he said.
She and several Victoria Devils teammates then took part in the weeklong B.C. High Performance Camp in Parksville. Robin went home after she developed flu-like symptoms.
Fournier learned of Robin’s death in a phone call from her mother, Tracy Carey.
Island Health said the B.C. Coroners Service confirmed Robin had an invasive group A streptococcal infection at the time of her death.
The B.C. Centre for Disease Control says group A streptococcal infections usually result in mild illnesses such as strep throat or impetigo. But, in some cases, the bacteria that cause the disease invade the lungs or blood, or spread along the tissue layers around muscle.
Robin was a Grade 8 student at Rockheights Middle School and had been accepted into the softball academy at Lambrick Park Secondary School.
On the field she was a fierce and intense competitor, Fournier said. “Off the field, she had a kind heart.”
Robin’s proudest accomplishment, he said, was when she played catcher for Team Canada in the Little League Softball World Series in Portland, Oregon, in 2016 and 2017.
“Robin would appreciate it if we celebrate her life by getting back on the diamond,” he said.
“Robin was a force to be reckoned with behind the plate, at bat, and on one,” the Hampton Little League board of directors said in the statement. “Robin is mourned by the Hampton community and will be deeply missed by those whose lives she’s touched.”
A memorial service is planned for today, 3:30 to 6 p.m., at the Les Passmore Centre, 286 Hampton Rd. in Saanich.