Huntsville E. coli outbreak ends in death
WAFF reported this morning that one of the victims of an E. coli outbreak traced back to Little Rosie's Mexican restaurant in Huntsville, Alabama, has died. The victim, whose name was not released, became ill with an E. coli infection in July, and developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a complication of E. coli infection.
The woman was one of the first to develop the E. coli bacteria in her bloodstream in July, and had spent the last several weeks in the hospital.
The family says the bacteria acted at least as a catalyst in their loved one's death. She passed away Wednesday morning.
The only common denominator among the cases health department officials could find was shredded lettuce served at Little Rosie's, a Mexican restaurant in Huntsville.
Health officials have not yet released information on whether they were able to identify a specific food served at Little Rosie's that was the source of the E. coli outbreak.
An article for the Huntsville Times gave an account of the homecoming of Samuel Coggin, a five-year-old boy who became ill with an E. coli O157:H7 infection and 
Health officials say the Huntsville outbreak most likely was caused by contaminated lettuce served at Little Rosie's between June 27 and June 30. Eighteen of the 19 known victims ate at the popular Mexican restaurant on Whitesburg Drive on those dates; the other infected person did not eat at Little Rosie's and caught the bacteria another way.
In what is now the largest E. coli outbreak in Alabama in 20 years, 18 people who ate at Little Rosie's restaurant in Huntsville, Alabama, have been confirmed as suffering from 
An E. coli outbreak in Huntsville, Alabama, that has sickened numerous customers of Little Rosie's and has sent at least three people to the hospital with hemolytic uremic syndrome, was caused by contaminated lettuce, according to the Madison County Health Department. The Huntsville Times reports that health officials have not determined when the lettuce became contaminated - if it was before or after it entered the restaurant, but they are looking into the possibility that the lettuce was cross-contaminated before it was served.
