Washington: Health officials say as many as 16 people have died from possible listeria illnesses traced to Colorado cantaloupes, the deadliest food outbreak in more than a decade.
The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday that 72 illnesses, including 13 deaths, are linked to the tainted fruit. State and local officials say they are investigating three additional deaths that may be connected.
The death toll released by the CDC Tuesday — including newly confirmed deaths in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Texas — surpassed the number of deaths linked to an outbreak of salmonella in peanuts almost three years ago. Nine people died in that outbreak.
Confirmed
The CDC said Tuesday that they have confirmed two deaths in Texas and one death each in Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska. Last week the CDC reported two deaths in Colorado, four deaths in New Mexico, one in Oklahoma and one in Maryland.
New Mexico officials said Tuesday they are investigating a fifth death, while health authorities in Kansas and Wyoming said they too are investigating additional deaths possibly linked to the tainted fruit.
Listeria is more deadly than well-known pathogens like salmonella and E. coli, though those outbreaks generally cause many more illnesses.
Twenty-one people died in an outbreak of listeria poisoning in 1998 traced to contaminated hot dogs and possibly deli meats made by Bil Mar Foods, a subsidiary of Sara Lee Corp. Another large listeria outbreak in 1985 killed 52 people and was linked to Mexican-style soft cheese.
The CDC said the median age of those sickened is 78.
What is listeria?
Listeria bacteria usually thrive in low temperatures. Outbreaks are usually associated with deli meats, unpasteurised cheeses and refrigerated smoked seafood products. The outbreak in melons is the deadliest in the US since a 1998 multi-state listeria outbreak involving contaminated hot dogs and deli meats that killed 32 and sickened 101.
According to the CDC some 1,600 people become sick with listeriosis while 260 died from infections. People with weakened immune systems are most vulnerable. Pregnant women are 20 times more likely than other healthy adults to get listeriosis and people with Aids are nearly 300 times more likely to get the infection, it asserts. The Centre for Science in the Public Interest said the outbreak underscores the need for the FDA to issue guidelines and regulations to help keep pathogens out of produce.
— Compiled from agencies
