Connecticut Salmonella Outbreak Stemmed from Potato Salad at Reception
Based on investigation of a Connecticut Salmonella reception outbreak in September 2009, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has written that multiple types of Salmonella might be involved in more outbreaks than generally realized.
Two types of Salmonella were identified in the public health probe of the Connecticut reception one year ago that sickened at least nine attendees: Salmonella enterica serovar Schwarzengrund and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium variant O:5. The investigation by the Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH) identified potato salad as the likely cause.
Lab cultures found co-infection in one attendee and one food service worker who was not showing Salmonella symptoms of illness at the time of the reception somewhere in Connecticut -- the study doesn't say where. Attendees at the reception ate from a self-service buffet, but workers who prepared the buffet were observed to have bare-handed contact with ready-to-eat food and did not practice adequate hand washing.
Potato salad consumption at this Connecticut reception was strongly associated with illness and the food was prepared by a local restaurant -- not in someone's home kitchen. The CDC said in its report on the two-type Salmonella outbreak that knowledge of all Salmonella serotypes involved in an outbreak might help implicate the outbreak source, define the scope of the outbreak, and determine the selection of appropriate control measures.
People sickened in this restaurant-catered reception may still be eligible to join a Salmonella lawsuit against the purveyor. Law firm PritzkerOlsen, P.A., is conducting its own investigation into the outbreak and is accepting cases at 1-888-377-8900 (TOLL FREE). You may also contact the law firm by complete the contact form on the side of this Web page.
PritzkerOlsen is a leading food safety law firm involved in virtually every foodborne illness outbreak in the United States. The firm has collected millions of dollars on behalf of people injured or killed as a result of adulterated food, including reception buffet food contaminated with Salmonella.
