A break and enter at a waste water treatment plant may result in E. coli

I’m not sure why someone would want to break into a waste water treatment plant; maybe there are compounds that can be used to make meth (or I’ve watched too much Breaking Bad). According to WLWT, someone who broke into an Indiana facility might have also exposed themselves to a bunch of pathogenic E.coli.

Police say a burglar or burglars who entered a wastewater treatment plant in southeast Indiana should enter a doctor’s office soon.

Versailles police said that sometime late Saturday or early Sunday, someone broke into the plant, stole several items and vandalized other items.no_rough_stuff_-_walt_jesse

But the burglar or burglars may have taken something else with them, police said.

“During the burglary the suspect(s) came into contact with strains of E. coli that were in an incubator so they need to seek medical attention immediately!!” police said in a Facebook post.

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About Ben Chapman

Dr. Ben Chapman is a professor and food safety extension specialist at North Carolina State University. As a teenager, a Saturday afternoon viewing of the classic cable movie, Outbreak, sparked his interest in pathogens and public health. With the goal of less foodborne illness, his group designs, implements, and evaluates food safety strategies, messages, and media from farm-to-fork. Through reality-based research, Chapman investigates behaviors and creates interventions aimed at amateur and professional food handlers, managers, and organizational decision-makers; the gate keepers of safe food. Ben co-hosts a biweekly podcast called Food Safety Talk and tries to further engage folks online through Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and, maybe not surprisingly, Pinterest. Follow on Twitter @benjaminchapman.