If the E. coli-romaine lettuce made it to an Alaskan prison, maybe it made it to an Edmonton restaurant.
Just asking.
According to the Toronto Star, one person has died and more than 30 people have fallen ill following an E. coli outbreak that Alberta Health Services has called “extremely complex” to investigate.
In a statement, AHS says it has expanded its investigation into the source of an outbreak of E. coli, beyond cases directly linked to an Edmonton restaurant late last month.
While 21 of these lab-confirmed cases are linked to Mama Nita’s Binalot restaurant in Edmonton, AHS no longer has public health concerns related to the restaurant.
The number of lab-confirmed cases of E. coli has increased to 34, including 11 patients who have needed hospital care, and one patient who has died likely due to E. coli infection.
“This outbreak is extremely complex, however AHS, in partnership with other provincial and federal agencies, is doing all we can to protect the health of Albertans,” said Dr. Chris Sikora, a medical officer of health in the Edmonton zone, in a statement. “The risk of illness remains very low.”
AHS has not yet identified the source of these cases, but believes they are linked to the initial outbreak.
The risk is not low if the cause is not known.
AHS has worked closely with the owners of Mama Nita’s Binalot since it was identified that a cluster of people with lab-confirmed E. coli ate at the restaurant. AHS says the owners have taken significant steps to manage this issue, including voluntarily closing until AHS was confident the restaurant could reopen without presenting a risk to the public.
