Illinois Health Officials Investigating E. Coli Outbreak Linked to El Rancherito Restaurant
September 26th, 2007 laurie
The Effingham County Health Department wants to talk with anyone who ate at the El Rancherito Restaurant in Effingham, Illinois and wound up sick. That’s because six other patrons of the restaurant became ill with E. coli poisoning, and one is still in the hospital. All of the victims had eaten at El Rancherito between September 11 and 13, 2007. Health officials are trying to figure out what at the restaurant made these people sick, and it would be helpful if they were informed of other possible E. coli cases possibly linked to El Rancherito. Even people who aren’t convinced their illness was or is E. coli should contact the restaurant. A lot of people who don’t get a severe infection write E. coli off as “just a stomach bug.”
E. coli bacteria can cause bloody diarrhea and dehydration. Young children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems are particularly vulnerable to E. coli. In some rare instances, the disease can progress to the point of kidney failure and death. While most people who suffer from E. coli poisoning recover within 7 to 10 days, extreme cases can require blood transfusions and dialysis treatments.
Even mild cases of E. coli need to be taken seriously, so anyone who ate at El Rancherito in Effingham should see a doctor if they have or are experiencing symptoms. And until they know exactly what they have, any one who might have E. coli poisoning should avoid over-the-counter diarrhea medication. Again, this is nothing to shrug off. Earlier this summer, a 48-year-old woman actually died after eating E. coli-tainted shredded lettuce served at a Little Rosie’s Taqueria restaurant in Huntsville, Alabama.
