E coli Death of Girl May Be Linked to Recalled Beef
A 7-year-old Cleveland girl has died from an E. coli O157:H7 infection that may have stemmed from contaminated ground beef recalled Thursday by an Illinois company.
The recall of 48 tons of frozen patties and refrigerated ground beef applies to meat produced March 10 by Valley Meats LLC of Coal Valley, Illinois. The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) said the recall was prompted by an epidemiological investigation by state health officials in Ohio who found genetically matched isolates of E. coli O157:H7 in three people who were not related.
One was a 3-year-old girl, one was a 24-year-old man and the third was a 71-year-old man. Two of the victims were hospitalized, but all three recovered, the Ohio Department of Health reported. The FSIS said other matching E. coli O157:H7 infections were found in Pennsylvania and Illinois, but the agency didn't say how many.
Hours after the recall was announced, news broke of a potential fourth victim in Ohio -- the 7-year-old girl. Here's what reporters Leila Atassi and Harlan Spector reported for The Plain Dealer's web site in Cleveland:
"Health officials did not identify the girl or provide details of the circumstances that led to her death. But Cleveland Health Director Matthew Carroll said the case might be the latest in a cluster of E. Coli infections traced to Valley Meats LLC, of Coal Valley, Ill.''
Lisa Abraham of the Akron Beacon Journal said two restaurants in Cuyahoga County are part of the investigation, but health officials haven't named them because it's not certain they are linked. The report said the recalled hamburger made by Valley Meats was for sale to restaurants and food service accounts.
According to the recall notice, the potentially contaminated beef was distributed nationwide under a dozen generic brands and the following name brands: 3S, Grillmaster, J&B, Klub, Thick 'N Savory and Ultimate. All packages are stamped with USDA establishment number 5712.
National food poisoning and food safety law firm Pritzker Olsen Attorneys is monitoring the outbreak and urging anyone who believes they may have become ill from ground beef produced by Valley Meats to immediately see a physician. Symptoms of E. coli include diarrhea (often bloody), severe cramps, possible nausea or vomiting and possible mild fever.
Pritzker Olsen is involved in practically all major outbreaks of foodborne illness and has recovered tens of millions of dollars for victims of E. coli O157:H7 and other deadly pathogens. Earlier this year, the firm was chosen to represent the Ohio family of Nellie Napier, an 80-year-old resident of Medina County who died of Salmonella infection linked to Peanut Corp. of America.
To contact an E. coli O157:H7 lawyer at Pritzker Olsen, call 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or write to us online for a free case consultation.
The 7 yr old that died attended my daughters school. Of course they did not release the information surrounding her death. My concern is as follows, the lunches at the elementary school are catered by a local restaurant. Since the names of the restaurants being investigated are not being released I fear there is a possibility it could be the one supplying lunches to the school. It is inconceivable that not only would the school but also the health department put more children at risk by not disclosing such important information. Can you obtain and share the names of the restaurants? My daughter has spent the last 4 days greiving and having nightmares from her classmates death. With knowledge comes power. And this knowledge could save the lives of children.
We agree with you, Crystal, and have been fighting for more disclosure for years. Recently, the USDA-FSIS has started providing more information on stores where recalled meat was sold, but more information needs to be provided to consumers. We will try to track down the name of restaurants tomorrow.
We have represented families of people who died in E. coli outbreaks, and it is tragic. We are also representing families of people who died in the recent Salmonella outbreak linked to peanut butter. One of our clients had the opportunity to speak before Congress.
We all need to be outraged that our food is killing people and let our state and federal legislators know we want safe food. We want to know that when we provide food for our children that it isn't going to kill them or make them sick.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of the little girl, the school, the community and your little girl, who shouldn't have to be scared and grieving.
If you would like to talk to one of our attorneys, please call us: 1-888-377-8900 (toll free). If you call after business hours, please leave a message, and one of our attorneys will get back to you as soon as possible. Thank you for your insightful comment.
According to news reports, the restaurants investigated in this outbreak were Deekers Side Tracks in Mentor (1 illness) and North Olmsted VFW (2 illnesses and possibly one death).
I think we have the right to petition about this! Ya know? Some people I think tried to attempt this before, but I don't see anything changed in my school. I am a bit young to say so but I think I agree with Crystal when she said the knowledge part. I mean seriously, I ate the hamburger at my school without knowing this and I felt kind of lazy. I assumed it wasn't organic beef. I think it was something else.. and then I found out with this info, and another one that it was grain fed.