|
Related links |
Worst outbreak for Canada
Posted
6-5-2000 Toronto. A sixth person died last week from an infection caused by the E. coli bacteria that tainted the drinking water in a small Ontario town in Canada’s worst outbreak of the illness, according to media reports. The reports said an elderly woman died in the South Bruce Grey Health Centre in Walkerton, Ontario, about 125 miles northwest of Toronto. The illness, which infected about 1,000 of the town’s 5,000 residents, killed four adults and a child last month. Officials at the Walkerton facility declined to comment on the reports. E. coli usually is found in the intestines of humans and animals. Some strains can cause dangerous – even life-threatening – infections. Symptoms include fever, severe cramping, diarrhea and vomiting. It can take two to 10 days for symptoms to appear and about a week for patients to recover. However, in a few cases, the illness overcomes the kidneys, a life-threatening situation. The E. coli outbreak has shattered the peace of the farming community of Walkerton. Townspeople have accused civic officials of a cover-up, and health officials have charged that the local utilities commission knew as early as mid-May that the tap water was contaminated, but failed to warn the public of the danger. The Ontario Provincial Police, the coroner’s office and the Environment Ministry are investigating. Health officials said the worst is over, but hospitals still are seeing new victims. "Numbers of visits to our emergency department related to E. coli are remaining steady. We continue to see new cases each day and expect this to continue for the next few days," the Walkerton hospital said in a statement released last week, before the death of the latest victim.
|