Moultrie, Georgia E. coli Outbreak May Be Linked to the Barbecue Pit
According to a Southwest Georgia Public Health District news release, the Barbecue Pit, a restaurant in Moultrie, Georgia may be linked to an E. coli outbreak that may have sickened at least nine people in Colquitt County, Georgia. Six people have confirmed cases of E. coli O157:H7, and three other patients have developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a severe illness that can cause kidney failure (renal failure) and that is often associated with E. coli infections.
“All of the patients with lab-confirmed cases of E. coli have recalled eating there [at the Barbecue Pit],” said Southwest Georgia Public Health District Deputy Health Director Brenda Greene.
Two of the people with hemolytic uremic syndrome also ate at the Barbecue Pit, according to Greene.
“The two patients with HUS are considered probable and we have some other tests pending that are possible cases of E. coli. Patients are still seeking medical treatment for symptoms that suggest the infection remains active,” said Greene.
According to Green, “We do not have all the evidence needed to clearly point to any one item as the source of the infection.” Even if a specific food is not implicated in this outbreak, restaurants are strictly liable for illnesses and death caused by the food they prepare. Our law firm has had several cases where a restaurant was held liable even though a specific food item served at the restaurant was not pinpointed as the source of the outbreak.
If health officials determine that a specific food item served at the restaurant was the source of the outbreak, the supplier and manufacturer of that food item, the restaurant and others may all be found liable for illness and death.
According to the Moultrie Observer, this E. coli outbreak that has been linked to the Barbecue Pit may have been caused by ground beef and may be connected to an E. coli outbreak in Michigan and Ohio that has been linked to Kroger ground beef, the components of which were supplied by Nebraska Beef, Ltd, which has recalled over 5 million pounds of ground beef components due to possible contamination with E. coli O157:H7 (Nebraska Beef recall):
If ground beef is connected to this Georgia outbreak, it would be possible to seek compensation for medical expenses, pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of income and other damages from the supplier of the ground beef components [for example, Nebraska Beef, Ltd.], the processor of the ground beef, the distributor of the ground beef, the seller of the raw ground beef, the Barbecue Pit and others. A law firm with E. coli litigation experience should be consulted.“A specimen sample from one of the patients resulted in a match to the same strain of E. coli bacteria in disease outbreaks in Michigan and Ohio, and those illnesses are linked to ground beef,” Greene said. “The National Centers of Disease Control and Prevention and state epidemiologists agree that ground beef may be a source of the infection in Colquitt County.”
Ground beef is used in some of the dishes served in the Barbecue Pit, a Moultrie restaurant that has voluntarily closed as disease investigators attempt to find the source of Escherichia coli (E. coli) 0157 contamination. A common thread among patients with confirmed cases of the disease is that they ate at the restaurant.
Our law firm has filed a lawsuit against Kroger Co. and Nebraska Beef, Ltd. on behalf of one of the victims of the Ohio E. coli outbreak. We are a national law firm and represent E. coli victims throughout the United States. To contact our law firm about an E. coli lawsuit, please call 1-888-377-8900 (toll-free), email Fred Pritzker or submit our firm's free E. coli case consultation form.
