BREAKING NEWS - Several state health departments, the CDC, and the United States Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS) are investigating a multi-state outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 which has led to the deaths of two American citizens.
On October 31, 2009, the FSIS issued a notice about a recall of 545,699 pounds of beef products from Fairbank Farms that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7. Health officials in several states who were investigating a cluster of E. coli O157:H7 illnesses, with isolates that match by “DNA fingerprinting” analyses, found that most ill persons had consumed ground beef, with several purchasing the same or similar product from a common retail chain. A sample from an opened package of ground beef recovered from a patient’s home was tested by the Massachusetts Department of Health and yielded an E. coli O157:H7 isolate that matched the patient isolates by DNA analysis.
The E. coli outbreak includes twenty-eight persons from 12 states infected with matching strains of E. coli O157:H7. Of these, the genetic association of 7 human isolates and the product isolate have been confirmed by an advanced secondary DNA test; secondary tests are pending on others. The number of ill persons identified in each state is as follows: California (1), Connecticut (4), Massachusetts (8), Maryland (1), Maine (2), Minnesota (1), New Hampshire (4), New Jersey (1), New York (1), Pennsylvania (2), South Dakota (2), and Vermont (1).
The first reported illness began on August 18, 2009, and the last began on October 10, 2009, although all but 2 patients reported becoming ill between September 17 and October 10, 2009. Sixteen patients have been hospitalized and 3 developed a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). Two deaths have been reported. Sixty-seven percent of patients are male and 43% are less than 18 years old (range 1 to 84 years).
Most of the beef packages in the E. coli beef recall bear the establishment number “Est. 492″ inside the USDA mark of inspection and have identifying package dates of “091509″ or “091609.” Consumers are urged to check their refrigerators and freezers for beef products produced by this firm and purchased on or after September 15, 2009 and discard or return the recalled beef products to the place of purchase for a refund. Customers with questions about the source of a package of beef should contact the place where they purchased it (e.g., grocery store, club store, or meat market).
This is the third recall for Fairbank Farms. In Sept. 2007 it recalled 884 pounds of ground beef products because of possible E. coli contamination, according to USDA records. In May 2008, it recalled 22,481 pounds of ground beef due to possible contamination with pieces of plastic.
The E. coli lawyers at Simon & Luke are actively investigating this outbreak. We have handled over 2000 food poisoning cases in the last 2 years alone. If you or a loved one has become infected with E. coli, or if you have information relating to this outbreak, please call our toll-free number at 1-888-335-4901 for a free consultation on your legal rights.
