Public Health of Seattle and King County is investigating a Salmonella outbreak associated with attendance at the Good Vibe Tribe Luau that took place on July 3, 2016. The event was held at Golden Gardens Park at 8498 Seaview Pl NW in Seattle. As of July 15, 2016, at least four people have been sickened by the pathogenic bacteria. No one has been hospitalized in this outbreak.
Salmonella case reports were received on July 11, July 12, and July 15, 2016. The common event exposure was identified during an interview on July 13, 2016. Public health investigators are looking at foods served during the luau to see what may have caused this outbreak.
Foods served at the event included rotisserie roasted pig, parilla (barbecued beef), congri (black beans and rice), tropical fruit salad, Hawaiian salad (pineapple cole slaw), Hawaiian sweet bread, and corn on the cob. The event was catered by Mojita of 7545 Lake City Way NE in Seattle. That facility was visited on July 13, 2016 as part of a traceback investigation.
If you or a family member attended that event, even if you did not get sick, please take a survey with Public Health. Your participation could help solve this outbreak. Answers to these questions will be kept confidential, and the website is encrypted and password-protected.
If you did attend that luau and have been sick, please see your doctor, especially if you are experiencing blood in the stool or have been sick longer than three days. The symptoms of Salmonella food poisoning include nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea that may be bloody, fever, chills, headache, and muscle pains. These symptoms usually start six to seventy-two hours after infection. If you attended that event and have not been sick, it is unlikely that you will, since the incubation period for a Salmonella infection is one to five days.
Most people get better on their own in about a week, but some, especially those with chronic health issues, can become so ill they need to be hospitalized. And Salmonella infections can cause health problems later in life, including Reiter’s Syndrome, which can cause reactive arthritis, irritable bowel disease, and high blood pressure.
