December 7, 2006

Nassau County Investigating 54 Cases of Possible E. Coli 0157:H7
Linked to Eating at Taco Bell

The Nassau County Department of Health has received reports of 54 Nassau County residents who have became ill after eating at Taco Bell restaurants. These include three people with cases of E. coli – two of which were hospitalized. The remaining 51 unconfirmed cases are being investigated.

In one of the unconfirmed cases, a Nassau County resident ate at a Taco Bell out of state and was subsequently hospitalized. In an additional case, a 16-year-old boy has been identified as having contracted E. coli 0157:H7 but he was not hospitalized.

A total of six Taco Bell restaurants within the county have been asked to voluntarily close down, discard their food and disinfect their premises. Taco Bell announced yesterday that it would order the removal of all green onions as a precautionary measure after its restaurants in three states were linked to E. coli infections. County health inspectors are on site today at all the Taco Bells within Nassau County to ensure that all green onions were discarded.

The details on the hospitalized patients include:

One patient, a 12-year-old boy, became ill and was hospitalized on November 24th, discharged on the 26th and was readmitted on November 29th. The boy had eaten at two Taco Bells, one in East Meadow, the other in Hempstead. He was released from the hospital yesterday.

A second patient, a 54-year-old woman, ate at the Seaford Taco Bell and was diagnosed with hemolytic uremic syndrome, which is associated with E. coli 0157:H7 infection. She remains hospitalized.

And a third patient, a Nassau County resident who ate at Taco Bell in Florida, was hospitalized for severe diarrhea. At this time, her case has not been confirmed as E. coli 0157:H7 infection, and she was released from the hospital yesterday.

At the county’s request, Taco Bell closed four restaurants on Monday – in Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City, in the Broadway Mall in Hicksville, at 1634 Front St. in East Meadow and at 490 Peninsula Blvd. in Hempstead – in order to discard all the food and disinfect the premises. The county has cleared those restaurants to reopen.

The county yesterday requested that Taco Bell close two additional outlets – at 3950 Sunrise Highway in Seaford, and 1650 Jericho Turnpike in New Hyde Park – after additional possible cases were reported in association with these sites. These locations have discarded their food and disinfected their premises, and are scheduled to reopen today when they receive shipments of new food.

Six people who ate at the New Hyde Park location within a two-day period reported gastro-intestinal problems. At this time, none of these cases are confirmed E. coli 0157:H7 infections.

The county is asking for the public’s help in this matter. Anyone who has come down with symptoms (see below) on or after Nov. 15, and who ate at a Taco Bell during the previous week, should call the county Department of Health at (516) 571-3680.

E. coli 0157:H7 is a leading cause of foodborne illness and is often characterized by bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramps and little or no fever. People become infected in a variety of ways, especially by eating undercooked ground beef or contaminated fresh vegetables. Symptoms usually appear about three days after exposure, but can emerge anywhere from one to nine days.

Most people recover without specific treatment in five to ten days. However, young children and the elderly may be at increased risk of developing hemolytic uremic syndrome, or HUS, a serious condition characterized by red blood cell destruction and kidney failure, that can result in death. Those who may be experiencing any symptoms of E. coli 0157:H7 infection should immediately seek medical care.

Click below for more information on E. Coli:

Department of Health and Human Services - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention