Follow-Up: First Death Confirmed in San Luis Obispo Pumpkin Farm E. coli Outbreak; County Closes Probe Without Finding Source

The San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department in California confirmed on November 10 that one person associated with the E. coli O157 outbreak linked to Brookshire Farms has died, the first death in the outbreak. The farm is located at 4747 Los Osos Valley Road in the city of San Luis Obispo, San Luis Obispo County.

"We can confirm that one individual associated with the E. coli outbreak has died. We are sharing this information with the permission of the individual's family," department spokesman Tom Cuddy told local media on November 10. The county offered its condolences but did not release the person's age or identity, and did not say whether the person was one of the five laboratory-confirmed cases or one of the ten suspect cases.

According to the county's earlier releases, all five people with laboratory-confirmed Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O157 infection visited the farm on October 17 or 18, and ten more people who visited between October 16 and 26 and developed symptoms were counted as suspect cases. The county's October 30 release reported that three children had developed hemolytic uremic syndrome and were in pediatric intensive care; local media reported that a 6-year-old boy from Nipomo was in critical condition at Stanford's Lucile Packard Children's Hospital. The county has not said whether the person who died was one of those three children.

The county announced on November 6 that it was wrapping up its investigation. Investigators found that the bacterial strains in three of the patients were a genetic match and did not closely match known strains in national databases, strongly suggesting a common and unique source; however, testing of water, food and other environmental samples collected at the farm did not find E. coli O157, and the specific source was not identified. Exposures common to the patients included edible corn cups, pumpkins, hay and non-potable water sources, and the farm had no farm animals or petting zoo open to the public. County Health Officer Dr. Christy Mulkerin said the risk of additional exposure has passed, there is no ongoing public health threat, and no additional environmental testing is planned.

Brookshire Farms closed voluntarily starting October 27 and reopened on November 6. The farm said its own tests and environmental samples came back negative for the outbreak strain. According to KSBY and The Tribune of San Luis Obispo, co-owner Shawn Callaway said he was heartbroken for the affected families and did not believe pumpkins were the source, saying the county had not tested the farm's pumpkins.

GSM first reported on this outbreak investigation on October 29, when five cases had been confirmed, three children were seriously ill and the farm had closed voluntarily.

Related: California Pumpkin Patch E. Coli Investigation in San Luis Obispo County: 5 Cases Confirmed, 3 Children in Serious Condition in Pediatric Intensive Care as Brookshire Farms Closes Voluntarily Through the Pumpkin Season

Source: San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department

Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)

Photo: 图：加州一处南瓜园（资料图，非涉事农场）。inkknife_2000 摄，CC BY-SA 2.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: A pumpkin patch in California (file photo; not the farm involved in this story). By inkknife_2000, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

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