CDC investigates E. coli outbreak in 4 states after Wendy’s customers get sick: NPR
A sign is seen at the entrance to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta on April 23, 2020. The CDC said it is investigating a E coli outbreaks in four states that have sickened at least 37 people.
Tami Chappell/AFP via Getty Images
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Tami Chappell/AFP via Getty Images
A sign is seen at the entrance to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta on April 23, 2020. The CDC said it is investigating a E coli outbreaks in four states that have sickened at least 37 people.
Tami Chappell/AFP via Getty Images
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday it is investigating a E coli outbreak in four states that has sickened at least 37 people and put 10 in hospital.
The health agency said the source of the outbreak has not been determined, but said many of those sickened had reported eating romaine lettuce sandwiches at Wendy’s restaurants in Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania before becoming ill.
So far, 19 people have reported getting sick in Ohio, 15 in Michigan, two in Pennsylvania and one in Indiana, but the CDC said the true number is likely to be higher. No deaths related to the outbreak have been reported.
Wendy’s said in a statement that it is “fully cooperating with public health officials on their ongoing investigation” and is removing romaine lettuce from sandwiches in the region as a precautionary measure. The CDC said it is still working to confirm whether the lettuce was the cause. Wendy’s added that the romaine lettuce used in the salads is different from the lettuce in the sandwiches.
The CDC said there was no evidence that romaine lettuce from other restaurants or grocery stores is linked to the outbreak and did not advise people to stop eating at Wendy’s.
Illnesses were reported from July 26 to Aug. 8, and the ages of sick people ranged from 6 to 91. Among the 10 hospitalized, three developed some type of kidney failure, the CDC said.
There are nearly 1,100 Wendy’s restaurants in the four states, according to Reuters.
