Health Law

Site of Largest E Coli 0111 Outbreak in History Re-Opens In Oklahoma

By Marler Clark LLP

 Just a couple days short of three months of being closed after being cited  as the source of the largest E. coli 0111 outbreak in modern history, the Country Cottage In Locus Grove, OK re-opened this weekend.

The restaurant located 50 miles east of Tulsa off the Cherokee Turnpike was allowed to re-open after reaching an agreement with state health officials.   The Country Cottage had to disconnect a private well on the property, allow for environmental testing in the restaurant anytime upon demand by state health officials and implement a monitoring system for employee hand-washing.

The August outbreak became the largest in the nation's history for the rare E. coli strain O111, killing one man and sickening more than 300 adults and children in the rural community of 1,500.

Those sickened range in age from a few months to 88 years.

The outbreak has been blamed for the death of 26-year-old Chad Ingle of Pryor, who died Aug. 24, a week after eating at the restaurant.

Several young children required dialysis after being sickened.  For more on the re-opening go here.

Full post as published by e.Coli Blog on November 23, 2008 (boomark / email).