Ladies Tea outbreak linked to Country Cottage
An E. coli O111 outbreak linked to Country Cottage, a Locust Grove, OK buffet restaurant, has expanded to a church gathering in Broken Arrow, OK (not to be confused with Neil Young's home, the Broken Arrow Ranch in Northern California).
According to KFSM, Tests show at least one person at the tea, which was catered by Country Cottage, has E. coli O111. There are four additional probable cases and 10 suspected cases.
The Country Cottage outbreak was the inspiration for the latest iFSN infosheet, which you can download here.
E. coli O111 toll in Oklahoma: 1 dead, 206 sick
On Feb. 1, 1995, the first report of a food poisoning outbreak in Australia involving the death of a child from hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) after eating contaminated mettwurst, an uncooked, semi-dry fermented sausage, reached the national press. The next day, the causative organism was identified in news stories as E. coli O111, a verotoxigenic E. coli (VTEC) which was previously thought to be destroyed by the acidity in fermented sausage products like mettwurst. By Feb. 3, 1995, the child was identified as a four-year-old girl and the number sickened in the outbreak was estimated at 21.
By Feb. 6, 1995, the manufacturers, Garibaldi Smallgoods, declared bankruptcy. Sales of smallgoods like mettwurst plummetted anywhere from 50 to 100 per cent according to the National Smallgoods Council.
The outbreak of E. coli O111 and the reverberations fundamentally changed the public discussion of foodborne illness in Australia, much as similar outbreaks of VTEC in Japan, the U.K. and the U.S. subsequently altered public perception, regulatory efforts and industry pronouncements in those countries.
In all, 173 people were stricken by foodborne illness linked to consumption of mettwurst manufactured by Garibaldi smallgoods. Twenty-three people, mainly children, developed HUS, and one died. Although sporadic cases of HUS had been previously reported, this was the first outbreak of this condition recognized in Australia.
The citizens of Locust Grove, Oklahoma, a community of 1,500 about 50 miles east of Tulsa, now know about E. coli O111. What no one knows is how it got into food associated with the Country Cottage restaurant
Health officials, who first reported the outbreak Aug. 25, said Tuesday that 206 people have become sick, including 53 children. Those sickened range in age from 2 months to 88 years.
The outbreak has been blamed for the death of 26-year-old Chad Ingle of Pryor, who died Aug. 24, a week after eating at the restaurant.
Search for E. coli O111 source continues in Oklahoma; 1 dead, 175 sick
The Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) reported Saturday Aug. 30/08 that at least 176 persons have become ill as a result of the E. coli O111 outbreak in northeastern Oklahoma. Cases include 128 adults and 48 children. Federal and state health officials say E. coli O111 is a rare type not normally associated with an outbreak this large.
OSDH disease investigators, along with staff from Tulsa Health Department and area local county health departments, have interviewed more than 450 persons in an effort to identify the source of the outbreak. Interviews continue this weekend.
While the source has not yet been identified, health officials continue to focus on the Country Cottage restaurant in Locust Grove, OK, after interviews with cases indicated most had eaten there during the time period Aug. 15 through Aug. 23.
The restaurant is closed while the investigation continues. Not all persons who ate at the restaurant have become ill. No other restaurant or food service outlet in the area has been linked to the outbreak.
OSDH laboratory analysis of water samples taken from a private well on the restaurant property is continuing, however, health officials believe it is unlikely that any well water contamination is the source of the outbreak.
One person has died in the outbreak.
