The boy’s name is Hunter Tallent.  A story in the local newspaper explains how he was diagnosed with E. coli poisoning after a family trip to the North Carolina State Fair in Raleigh. As of Tuesday, Hunter still had no kidney function after more than a week of treatments. The family learned October 24 that Hunter was infected with E. coli poisoning and had developed a life-threatening complication known as hemolytic uremic syndrome, or HUS, that is most common in children under the age of 5.

“They immediately said he’s got to go, his kidneys are failing,” mother Lindsay Tallent  told The Shelby Star newspaper. “My heart hit the floor. We thought maybe he got dehydrated…needed a few bags of fluid and would be home in a couple of hours.”

The young boy contracted the illness at the N.C. State Fair in Raleigh, which public health investigators have linked to the outbreak. About two dozen people have been confirmed as victims, including Hunter. Scientists are still trying to determine whether the outbreak was caused by contaminated food or an animal exhibit.

Community support from the people in Cleveland County has been a real lift, spiritually, for Hunter and his family.

“We’re just having to wait and watch and hope and pray,” his mother said.

Source: Shelby Star

State health officials are trying to pinpoint what caused at least 25 people to be sickened with a toxic form of E. coli that left at least four children hospitalized with kidney failure and possibly other symptoms of life-threatening hemolytic uremic syndrome, or HUS. E. coli HUS is a complication of E. coli infection that most often affects children under 5.

This outbreak may have been caused by a food contaminated by E. coli or contact with animals at one of the fair’s many exhibits. To help investigators identify the source, they need to talk to some fair attendees who didn’t get sick. If you fill out a survey, you may get a followup call from an E. coli investigator. This is excellent public health service for those who who study outbreaks and try to prevent them.

NC State Fair Lawsuit

E. coli lawyers at national food safety law firm Pritzker Olsen Attorneys are conducting a separate investigation for a North Carolina E. coli lawsuit on behalf of vicitims. Our law firm has collected tens of millions of dollars for E. coli outbreak victims in every corner of the U.S. This complex area of law requires attention to detail and experience in negotiations with meatpackers, food companies, restaurants, event managers and grocery stores who need to be held accountable for any negligence. Experience shows that outbreaks of food poisoning are preventable. For free case consultations, call 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or leave your contact information online and an attorney will call you.

Nationwide, State-Wide, or Area-Wide Distribution
Food 4 Less Stores in IL and IN
Food Lion Stores in FL, GA, NC, SC, VA, WV
Harvey’s Stores in FL, GA, SC
Jay-C Food stores in IN
Kroger Stores in AR, IL, IN, KY, MI, MS, MO, OH, TN
Payless Super Market Stores in IN
Reid’s Stores in SC
Ruler Food Stores in IN
Save-A-Lot Stores East of the Rocky Mountains
Scott’s Stores in IN
Supervalu Stores Nationwide

Delaware
Dover AFB in Dover Delaware

Illinois
Hilander, 2206 Barnes Blvd, Rockford IL-Illinois
Hilander, 3134 11th Street, Rockford IL-Illinois
Hilander, 2514 S. Alpine Rd., Rockford IL-Illinois
Hilander, 2601 N. Mulford Rd., Rockford IL-Illinois
Hilander, 3710 N. Main St., Rockford, IL-Illinois
Hilander, 1715 Rural St., Rockford IL-Illinois
Hilander, 4860 Hononegah Rd., Roscoe IL-Illinois

Indiana
Payless Super Market, 1845 N. Scatterfield Rd., Anderson IN-Indiana
Payless Super Market, 1900 Applewood Center Dr., Anderson IN-Indiana
Payless Super Market, 3050 Meridian, Anderson IN-Indiana
Ruler Food Store, 624 E. 16th St.,Bedford IN-Indiana
Ruler Food Store, 360 E. Main St., Bloomfield IN-Indiana
Owen’s, 1245 S. Jefferson, Huntington IN-Indiana
Owen’s,  2718 Guilford, Huntington IN-Indiana
Payless Super Market, 65 Beck Lane, Lafayette IN-Indiana
Payless Super Market, 2513 Maple Point Dr., Lafayette IN-Indiana
Owen’s, 903 Lincolnway S., Ligonier IN-Indiana
Ruler Food Store, 600 West Broadway St., Loogootee IN-Indiana
Ruler Food Store, 120 E. 2nd St., Madison IN-Indiana
Ruler Food Store, 1307 West Main St., Mitchell IN-Indiana
Ruler Food Store, 1503 West Broadway, Princeton IN-Indiana
Ruler Food Store, 805 S. Main St., Salem IN-Indiana
Owen’s, 302 W. Market, Warsaw IN-Indiana
Owen’s, 2211 E Center St., Warsaw IN-Indiana
Payless Super Market, 1032 Sagamore Pkwy West, West Lafayette IN-Indiana

North Carolina
Bottom Dollar, 1327 E. Dixie Drive, Asheboro NC-North Carolina
Bottom Dollar, 1810 Hwy 64-70 S.E., Hickory NC-North Carolina
Bottom Dollar, 3136 E. Kivett Drive, High Point NC-North Carolina
Bottom Dollar, 235 East Plaza Drive, Mooresville NC-North Carolina
Bottom Dollar, 1136 W. Pine Street, Mount Airy NC-North Carolina

Public health officials who study these outbreaks warn parents to be especially cautious if you have a child or someone in the family who is elderly or living with a compromised immune system. Certain experts — including epidemiologists at the Minnesota Department of Health — warn that children under 5 years of age, immunocompromised persons, pregnant women and the elderly should avoid eating sprouts (including alfalfa, clover, radish, and mung bean sprouts).

E. coli O157:H7 and other forms of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli can be life-threatening to young children because they are in the age group most at risk for a complication known as hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). This condition leads quickly to kidney failure after initial symptoms of E. coli (bloody diarrhea and painful stomach cramps) begin to subside. The infection, which attacks a person’s red blood cells, can also lead to stroke, paralysis, severe anemia and vascular injury in the heart and elsewhere. HUS survivors must spend the rest of their lives with affects of the disease, including hypertension, diabetes, kidney problems and other deficits.

In E. coli sprout outbreaks, unsanitary manufacturing practices and seed contamination are often to blame. There are a number of approved techniques to kill harmful bacteria that may be present on seeds and even tests for seeds during sprouting. But no treatment is guaranteed to eliminate all harmful bacteria and growers stick to food safety standards in varying degrees. Sprout E. coli outbreak investigations conducted by our law firm over the years has reaffirmed this premise time and time again.

Pritzker Olsen Attorneys is one of the very few legal groups in the country practicing extensively in the area of E. coli litigation, representing families and individuals who deserve compensation for medical bills, pain and suffering, lost time at work and other harms caused by the negligence of those who profit from selling food. Even we were taken aback this year at the power of a sprout E. coli outbreak in Europe, centered in northern Germany.

Amid panic and exhaustive efforts to find the source of the outbreak, upwards of 4,000 people became infected with Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O104:H4 and more than 823 of those victims became patients with HUS, or hemolytic uremic syndrome. At least 45 people died. Ultimately, the outbreak was traced to contaminated sprout seeds imported from Egypt. The micro-organisms naturally multiply and cluster as the seeds sprout because they are grown in warm and moist environments. This is what creates the food safety risk and it’s a chronic problem that deserves much closer scrutiny by the industry and by regulators. While consumers should take precautions, they are not to blame when contaminated sprouts make someone seriously ill.

The recalled ground beef and hamburger patties were sold to restaurants in the Cincinnati area, but the company did not say which restaurants. Each clear plastic bag and label bear the establishment number “EST. 1188” within the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s mark of inspection.

J.B. Meats said it was notified on Aug. 12 of an investigation of two E. coli O157:H7 illnesses. The Cincinnati Health Department reported there were two patients who became ill on July 20 and 21 that may have resulted from ground beef consumed on July 16 and 17, the company said.

Epidemiological and microbiological evidence points to a possible link between the ground beef products produced by J.B. Meats on July 15 and the illnesses in Cincinnati, Ohio. The company said the recall is precautionary, as there has been no conclusive link between the illnesses and the ground beef produced at the facility.

E. coli O157 can cause hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) and thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP), both severe illnesses that can cause kidney failure, central nervous system damage (seizures, stroke, paralysis, etc.), heart failure, pancreatitis and death.

Some restaurants purchased the ground beef and some of the nine victims of this outbreak are believed to have been sickened while dining out. The McNees recall also applies to certain packages of ground beef sold from its retail location in North Branch, Michigan.

Michigan officials have stated so far that five people are confirmed case patients in the outbreak while four others are probable case patients. Of special concern in this outbreak is that two-thirds of all people associated with it have had to be hospitalized for the seriousness of their illnesses. So far, no deaths have been reported.

The outbreak started in mid-July and patients have ranged in age from 15 to 88. Those affected live in the Michigan counties of Lapeer, Genesee, Isabella, and Sanilac.

Pritzker Olsen law firm is accepting cases from this outbreak for a possible ground beef E. coli lawsuit against McNees. Free case consultations are available at 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or you may provide your contact information and an E. coli lawyer will call you.

Holding companies accountable for contamination in our food supply is an integral function of food safety in the United States. Harms caused by food poisoning — especially infections of E. coli O157 — can plague a person with long-lasting health concerns that should be monitored annually by a physician. Hospitalization, lost time at work, travel expense, pain, suffering, medical checkups and additional expenses are costs that victims should not shoulder when the cause of injury was a dangerous micro-organism spread by fecal contamination. E. coli outbreaks are preventable.

Thirteen children and two adults who either played in the Splash Park or swam in the pool at the Opelika SportsPlex and Aquatic Center between June 4 and June 22 were identified with severe gastrointestinal illness. Five children have been confirmed positive for E. coli O157:H7 infection. Four children were initially hospitalized and two remain hospitalized.

Legal Theories for a Lawsuit Involving E. coli in Public Swimming Area

With cases involving E. coli poisoning from a swimming pool or splash park, there are two primary legal theories that could be involved: 1) premises liability and 2) negligence.

1. Premises Liability: A property owner is liable for injuries that occur as a result of a dangerous or hazardous condition on the property that the owner knew about or should have known about. To prevent E. coli outbreaks, it is essential that public pools and water parks follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines for adequate chlorine and pH levels. All sorts of things can reduce chlorine levels in pool water. Some examples are sunlight, dirt, debris, and material from swimmers’ bodies. That’s why chlorine levels must be routinely measured. As pH goes up, the ability of chlorine to kill germs goes down, so pH levels also need to be tested.
2. Negligence: An enormous amount of evidence needs to be gathered and analyzed to determine whether a public swimming facility was negligent. The following are some of the questions that need to be answered: 1) What was the testing timetable and was the testing done? 2) What were the testing procedures and were they followed? 3) If chlorine or pH levels needed adjusting, were they adjusted? 4) Was there known fecal contamination? 5) If there was fecal contamination, what was the fecal incident response?

E. coli infections can develop into hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), which can cause kidney failure, strokes, brain damage, heart problems, pancreatitis, other serious health problems, and death. Our E. coli attorneys have won millions for E. coli HUS victims and their families. We have stood at the bedsides of our young clients as they fought for their lives and take every measure to ensure that they have the best legal representation possible. They deserve it.

The Alabama E. coli outbreak linked to the Splash Park at the Opelika Sportsplex and Aquatic Center continues to grow. The Alabama Department of Public Health says 5 children have gastrointestinal illness, and 3 of those children have tested positive for E. coli infections. The children were at the Opelika Splash Park between June 12 and June 18.

Four children have been hospitalized at East Alabama Medical Center. One of the children was transferred to Children’s Hospital of Alabama. Children with E. coli can suffer severe abdominal pain and dehydration from bloody diarrhea. If a child develops HUS, complications include kidney failure (requiring dialysis), hypertension, stroke, blindness, pancreatitis, heart attack and other serious medical problems.  Our young HUS clients from other outbreaks have been in the hospital for weeks or months and fought for their lives.

Our E. coli attorneys represent E. coli and E. coli HUS victims nationwide. For a free consultation with an attorney about a lawsuit against the City of Opelika and others, call 1-888-377-8900 (toll free) or submit our free consultation form.

For those reasons, the FDA chose the outbreak for a postmortem environmental assessment in hopes of tracing exactly where in the supply chain the romaine became contaminated. The answer? The likely cause was human waste emptied from RVs at an RV park adjacent to an irrigation canal. The E. coli-contaminated canal was used to water four farm fields where the romaine was grown and picked.

The recently published FDA findings coincide with final-phase E. coli lawsuit work conducted by national food safety law firm PritzkerOlsen, P.A. Ohio-based Freshway was implicated early on in this outbreak and conducted a romaine recall. When the investigation of the plant failed to determine how the lettuce became contaminated, FDA’s researchers turned to the farm fields in Wellton, Arizona, where the produce was grown. Those sickened in the outbreak were from Ohio, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania and Tennessee.

E. coli O145 is similar to the more prevalent E. coli O157:H7 in that it is an enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) and a Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC).  It is the Shiga toxins that can cause serious injury or death, usually in part with hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), the leading cause of kidney failure in children worldwide. HUS. E. coli O145 is part of a group of E. coli serotypes called non-O157 STEC.

According to FDA documents obtained by law firm PritzkerOlsen, the R.V. park is located on a knoll directly above the lateral irrigation canal that supplies water to the suspect fields. The R.V. park is serviced by eight on-site septic leach systems. The FDA investigation found evidence of drainage from the R.V. park directly into the irrigation canal. No outbreak strains of E. coli O145 were found, but two drag swabs and one mud sample found non-O157 STEC Shiga toxin 2 (Stx2)-producing E. coli. Investigators noted that a water pump and hose at this location could be used by R.V. owers to empty and rinse their toilet tanks.

“We determined that the R.V. park is a reasonably likely potential source of the outbreak pathogen,” the report said.

This outbreak hit hard on several school campuses and PritzkerOlsen is representing a woman whose freshman studies were abruptly interrupted at Daemen College in Amherst, New York, when she became infected and seriously ill after eating contaminated lettuce. PritzkerOlsen is one of the very few law firms in the country practicing extensively in the area of foodborne illness litigation and its attorneys have collected tens of millions of dollars for victims of food poisoning. A lawyer is always available to answer legal questions about an E. coli death or illness at 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or communication can be started with our online contact form.

At least 38 people since early October have been sickened in the Costco Bravo Farms E. coli outbreak in Arizona, Colorado, California, New Mexico and Nevada. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is continuing to investigate the outbreak along with state health officials who have isolated the outbreak strain of E. coli in opened and unopened packages of Bravo Farms Dutch Style Gouda Cheese sold or sampled at Costco. The Bravo Farms label says the Gouda was made from raw milk. All Bravo Farms cheeses have been recalled since the outbreak became known.

Attorneys from Pritzker Olsen law firm have gone to work for victims of this outbreak and the firm continues to accept new cases at 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or by completing the contact form on the side of this Web page. Pritzker Olsen is one of only a few in the country practicing extensively in the area of foodborne illness litigation and we continue to field inquiries about a Bravo Farms E. coli class action lawsuit. Over the years we have recovered millions for victims of E. coli and HUS or hemolytic uremic syndrome.

The Vermont study is of interest because it shows that Gouda and stirred-curd Cheddar cheeses made from raw milk don’t shed E. coli 0157:H7 in the required 60-day aging process. Counts of the bacteria decreased in the first 60 days of aging, but E. coli 0157:H7 was still detected in Gouda and Cheddar more than 100 days after the cheeses were infused with the pathogen.

“In agreement with results of previous studies, our results suggest that the 60-day aging requirement alone is insufficient to completely eliminate levels of viable E. coli O157:H7 in Gouda or stirred-curd Cheddar cheese manufactured from raw milk contaminated with low levels of this pathogen,” the authors wrote in a synopsis of the study published this month in the Journal of Food Protection. The authors are affiliated with the University of Vermont’s Department of Nutrition of Food Sciences.