The Northeast Seafood Salmonella Thompson outbreak has ended with 115 sick in 15 states as of December 6, 2021, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Twenty people were hospitalized because they were so sick. That’s an increase of 13 more patients and one more state (California) since the last update in October 2021. Most of the patients live in Colorado.
The case count by state is: Arizona (1), California (1), Colorado (93), Connecticut (1), Iowa (1), Minnesota (2), Missouri (1), Nebraska (2), New Jersey (2), Pennsylvania (1), Texas (2), Virginia (3), Washington (1), Wisconsin (2), and Wyoming (2). Illness onset dates range from May 11, 2021 to October 16, 2021. The patient age range is from less than one year to 85 years. The hospitalization rate for this Salmonella outbreak was 18%.
Public health officials interviewed people about the foods they ate the week before they got sick. Among 81 people interviewed, 83% said they ate seafood, including raw seafood in sushi as well as cooked seafood. Those patients said they ate seafood that was served at restaurants and sold at grocery stores in Colorado. Traceback revealed that Northeast Seafood Products was the supplier of seafood to most of those venues.
Bacteria from ill persons’ isolates were closely related genetically through whole genome sequencing. That suggests that people in this outbreak got sick from eating the same food. FDA inspected the Northeast Seafood Products facility and collected environmental samples for testing in October. Lab results found the outbreak strain of Salmonella Thompson in those environmental samples.
Northeast Seafood recalled several types of seafood processed at their facility on October 8, 2021. The seafood included haddock, monkfish, bone-in trout, grouper, red snapper, red rock cod, ocean perch, Pacific cod, halibut, coho salmon, Atlantic salmon portions, lane snapper, tilapia, all natural salmon fillet, Pacific sole, and farm raised striped bass.
Symptoms of a Salmonella food poisoning infection include a fever, chills, headache, nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, abdominal cramps, and diarrhea that may be bloody. While most people recover without medical care, some do get sick enough to be hospitalized. And the long term complications of a Salmonella infection can be serious, including reactive arthritis, high blood pressure, and irritable bowel syndrome.
If you ate any of the recalled products, either from a grocery store or restaurant, and have been ill with these symptoms, see your doctor. You may be part of this Northeast Seafood Salmonella Thompson outbreak.
If you or a loved one have been sickened with a Salmonella Thompson infection after eating recalled Northeast Seafood Products fish, please contact our experienced attorneys for help at 1-888-377-8900 or 612-338-0202.
