E Coli Lawyer & Attorney : Marler Clark Law Firm : E. coli Blog

It seemed like such a good idea at the time.  Everyone would meet at Regatta Park in downtown Oklahoma City at the corner of Reno and Lincoln.  The race would begin off the docks of the Chesapeake Boathouse with a one lap, 1.5 kilometer swim across the Oklahoma River.  The Boathouse International Triathlon would finish up with a 40k bike race and 10k  foot race with $30,000 in prize money for the winners.

That was two weekends ago. Now, however, the Oklahoma Department of Health has reason to believe at least 20 of the 376 triathlon participants are sick with "gastrointestinal illness"

Race officials went ahead with the triathlon on May 16-17th even though water tests conducted on May 15th showed an E. coli count of 573 per 100 milliliters of water. The state standard for "primary body contact recreation," where ingesting water is possible, is a count no higher than 126 for E. coli.

State health officials are now asking every triathlon participant to fill out an online health survey.

Oklahoma's water woes are becoming all too common.  Private well water was suspected in last year's outbreak of E. coli 0111 in Locust Grove, OK.   The state's final report on that can be found here.  Contamination from "poultry litter" has been a subject for litigation involving both the Oklahoma and Illinois rivers.

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The following was an editorial by Youngstown, Ohio television station WYTV-33:

Summertime means firing-up the grill or heading to the county fair, but it also means e-coli dangers.

The US Department of Agriculture says at least three people in Ohio are sick with e-coli after eating meat from Valley Meats in Illinois.  The company is now recalling nearly 96,000 pounds of ground beef.

You can protect yourself from e-coli by washing your hands and food, and fully cooking your meat.  E-coli can cause abdominal pain, and even acute kidney failure.  Health officials say e-coli has a 1 to 10 day incubation period.

William Marler, Food Borne Illness Attorney says, "An e-coli outbreak, it is never the last thing you ate.  It is usually 3 to 4 or 5 days ago that likely made you sick.  So having a pretty good understanding of what your diet has been 3 or 4 or 5 days ago become equivical when the health dept. is investigating."

For more information, you can call the USDA meat and poultry hotline at 1-888-MP-HOTLINE or click here.

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Ohio health officials have confirmed the death of a 7-year old Cleveland girl due to an E. coli infection related to what is now a multi-state outbreak traced back to a troubled Illinois meatpacker.

Yesterday's recall of 96,000 pounds of ground beef from Valley Meats LLC was not a first time offense for the Coal Valley, IL business that is known to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) as "Establishment 5712."

J&B Meats, listed on USDA records as the processor for Valley Meats, previously:

• Recalled 63,000 pounds of ground beef on 6/26/02.
• Recalled 76,000 pounds of ground beef on 8/23/03, and
• Recalled 173,554 pounds of ground beef on 10/13/07.

Like the current recall, all the previous recalls from "Establishment 5712" were for E. coli contamination. Last time, consumer complaints led to the E. coli discovery. Before that it was the Wisconsin Health Department, and the first time, USDA didn't say.

Both Valley Meats and J&B Meats operate out of 2302 First Street in Coal Valley, IL, sharing the same establishment number and same address and phone number in USDA's files.  J&B also is one of the brand names listed in the Valley Meats recall.

So far three other Ohio illnesses have been linked to the E. coli strain: A three-year-old girl, a 24-year-old man and a 71-year-old man.  People are also believed to be sick in Pennsylvania and Illinois.  MSNBC has a story here.

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The Food and Drug Administration today annonced that the agency is involved in the investigation related to the E. coli O157:H7 outbreak at Taco Bell restaurants. The FDA is actively working with state and local health officials, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the firm, suppliers and distributors to determine the cause of the sicknesses and prevent additional infections.

The investigation has so far focused on green onions, or scallions, supplied to Taco Bell. According to the LA Times, New Jersey food safety regulators and the FDA are investigating two suppliers: McLane Foodservice and a Florence, N.J., facility operated by Irwindale-based Ready Pac Foods Inc.

Ready Pac today announced that it has ceased distribution of green onions until the investigation into the Taco Bell E. coli outbreak has been completed.
 

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The New York State Health Department has issued a press release regarding its investigation into illnesses traced to Taco Bell restaurants.

State Health Commissioner Antonia C. Novello, M.D., M.P.H., Dr.P.H., today announced that the State Health Department is investigating 15 cases with laboratory evidence of a E. coli O157:H7 infection in New York State tied to a national outbreak associated with Taco Bell restaurants. An additional 15 cases are also being investigated. There have been 13 hospitalizations and 1 report of hemolytic uremic syndrome, a severe complication of E. coli O157:H7 infection that can lead to kidney failure.

The New York State Department of Health is independently testing the green onions to confirm preliminary test results obtained by Taco Bell. Taco Bell has removed green onions at all of its restaurants nationwide.
 

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