A law firm has filed a lawsuit against Apple Minnesota, LLC, dba Applebee's Neighborhood Grill and Bar on behalf of Keith Comstock. He was diagnosed with an E. coli O111 infection after eating at the Applebee's restaurant in Woodbury, Minnesota. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota. Attorney Fred Pritzker and his team are representing Mr. Comstock. Mr. Comstock dined at the Applebee's restaurant on or about June 24, 2014. He ordered the Oriental Chicken Salad, which contained, among other ingredients, carrots, cabbage, and greens. About three days later, he began to suffer from the symptoms of E. coli O111 food poisoning and tested positive for the bacteria. He remained ill for several weeks. E. coli O111 is a foodborne pathogen that is very … [Read more...]
Applebee’s E. coli Lawsuit Was News After All Star Game
Television coverage of baseball's 2014 Major League All Star Game was immediately followed in the host city of Minneapolis with a news report of the first lawsuit in Minnesota's Applebee's E. coli outbreak. E. coli lawyer Fred Pritzker, whose law office overlooks Target Field in the city's downtown core, was interviewed at length by Fox 9 News in a story that immediately followed the game. Pritzker represents a young man from Woodbury, Minnesota, who is one of 13 confirmed victims of the outbreak. On the victim's behalf, attorneys at PritzkerOlsen P.A. sued Apple Minnesota LLC in United States District Court just hours before the first pitch was thrown in the All Star game. The case and the outbreak could have national implications because investigators suspect the outbreak could have … [Read more...]
Minnesota E. coli O111 Outbreak Sickens 13
The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) is investigating 13 cases of E. coli O111. All of the illnesses were caused by the same genetic strain, as determined by laboratory testing. The ill persons are not related, which indicates the illnesses result from a widely distributed food item. This genetic strain of E. coli O111 has not been seen in the United States until this outbreak. Seven of the people sickened reported to MDH that they ate at Applebee's restaurants in Minnesota between June 24 and 27, 2014, but the other cases have no apparent connection to the restaurant. The Applebee's restaurants involved in the outbreak are in Blaine, Duluth, Monticello, Roseville, and Woodbury. According to MDH, Applebee's is cooperating with the investigation and with public health … [Read more...]
Wolverine E. coli Lawsuit Filed in Hamburger Outbreak
An E. coli lawsuit has been filed in the Wolverine hamburger outbreak that struck restaurant-goers in Michigan and Ohio before investigators traced it to batches of ground beef supplied by Wolverine Packing Company of Michigan. The litigation claims made in Kalamzoo County Circuit Court relate to a young Michigan woman who was one of several people hospitalized in April and May 2014. "Epidemiologic and traceback investigations indicated that contaminated ground beef produced by Wolverine was the likely source of this outbreak,'' said the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service. Additional confirmation of the outbreak came from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) after the agency interviewed suspected victims and confirmed a dozen case patients, including five in Ohio … [Read more...]
CDC Updates E. coli Outbreak Linked to Jimmy John’s Sprouts
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has updated their investigation into the E. coli O121 outbreak linked to raw clover sprouts served at Jimmy John's and other restaurants. As of June 27, 2014, the case count stands at 18. The case count per state is: Idaho (3), Michigan (1), Montana (2), Utah (1), and Washington (11). Forty-four percent of ill persons have been hospitalized in this outbreak. No one has developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) and no deaths have been reported. Illnesses range from May 1, 2014 to May 20, 2014. Ill persons range in age from 11 years to 45 years, with a median age of 27 years. Seventy-six percent of ill persons are female. Illnesses that began after June 4, 2014 may not have been reported because of the length of time between getting sick … [Read more...]
Wolverine Ground Beef E. coli O157:H7 Outbreak Over
The CDC has declared that the E. coli O157:H7 outbreak linked to ground beef produced by Wolverine Packing Company appears to be over. In total, 12 people in 4 states were sickened in this outbreak. Seven (58% of the outbreak total) of ill persons were hospitalized; no one developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), and no deaths were reported. Epidemiologic and traceback investigations indicated that contaminated ground beef produced by Wolverine was the likely source of this outbreak. The beef was distributed to retailers and restaurants nationwide. In interviews, 11 of the 12 persons stated they ate ground beef prepared as a hamburger served at a restaurant before becoming ill. Findings of multiple traceback investigations of the ground beef used at restaurants where the ill … [Read more...]
HUS Kidney Failure from Shredded Lettuce: The Federico’s Story
E. coli HUS patients from last summer's major E. coli O157:H7 restaurant outbreak are able to look back now with durable evidence that contaminated shredded lettuce caused their kidney failure. Records produced by the Maricopa County Departments of Public Health and Environmental Services explain in some detail how the E. coli food poisoning cases clustered among scores of people who dined at one Phoenix-area Federico's Mexican Restaurant. Foodborne outbreaks of E. coli O157:H7 in restaurants can have devastating effects. What typically starts with fever may develop into full-blown hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) -- a disease that is particularly devastating in children, the elderly or others who have underdeveloped or weakened immune systems. In the Federico's outbreak, public health … [Read more...]
FDA Inspects Evergreen Fresh Sprouts, Linked to E. coli Outbreak
The FDA has conducted an investigation of Evergreen Fresh Sprouts LLC in May and June of 2014 after an E. coli O121 outbreak was linked to their products. The inspection revealed problems at the facility, including irrigation water dripping from rusty valves directly into sprouting vats containing growing sprouts, and tennis rackets with "scratches, chips, and frayed plastic" being used to scoop mung bean sprouts from the harvester to the conveyer belt. The outbreak has sickened at least 17 people in four states. Forty-seven percent of ill persons have been hospitalized in this outbreak, although no one has developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), one of the complications of an E. coli infection. The outbreak case count is as follows: Idaho (3), Michigan (1), Montana (1), Utah (1), … [Read more...]
Researchers Fight STEC E. coli on Beef
Researchers from the department of animal science at Texas A&M Univeristy and Texas A&M AgriLife Research are focusing on ways to inhibit the growth of STEC E. coli on beef. The Shiga-toxin E. coli bacteria cause 230,000 cases of illness every year in the U.S., when beef is not handled properly and is not cooked to a minimum temperature of 160°F. That beef, when it is not cooked properly or deliberately undercooked, also causes more than 2,000 cases of hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) every year, a life-threatening complication of a STEC infection that can lead to kidney failure and death. Such is the case with the ongoing E. coli O157:H7 outbreak in Michigan, Ohio, Massachusetts, and Missouri, where undercooked hamburger is linked with the illness of 11 people, six of whom have … [Read more...]
Wolverine 900 Ton Recall, 11 Ill; Foster Farms No Recall, 708 Ill
Last week, an E.coli outbreak that has sickened 11 people in four states triggered a 900-ton recall of ground beef. Lab tests have shown that the E.coli strain in all 11 people is a genetic match and all 11 reported eating a rare hamburger, with meat later discovered to be from Wolverine, in the days before becoming ill. Tests on meat from Wolverine, performed weeks after the meat linked to the reported illnesses, were negative for E.coli, a spokesman for the company has said. But the recall, issued out of caution, stands. That hasn't been the case with chicken produced by Foster Farms. In two almost back-to-back Salmonella outbreaks (outbreak 1, outbreak 2) tainted chicken produced by the company has sickened at least 708 people. In each outbreak, lab tests showed that the outbreak … [Read more...]
