Yesterday, the law firm of Ron Simon & Associates filed an e. coli lawsuiton behalf of Mary Margaret Dowd after she contracted STEC - or Shiga-toxin-producing e. coli. She became ill after eating the chips and guacamole, and is one of about 17 identified victims. So far, that is. Our food poisoning law firm is receiving calls at an alarming rate following the outbreak, says Simon, indicating it still may grow beyond the 17 currently identified. Simon added:
"the nature of this outbreak is disturbing. While Mrs. Dowd ate chips and guacamole, there are others who have been developing e. coli who ate on different days and ate deferent foods. In fact, the victims ate there over the course of 12 days, and that means there was a serious, endemic problem for a prolonged period of time. The victims were being exposed to a serious pathogen for a much longer period of time than in most restaurant-based outbreaks. "
Why is this true? (1) Proper cleaning and sanitizing helps prevent lingering bacterial infection; (2) discarding old food that might be contaminated, and starting off with fresh batches of food daily, prevents contamination from spreading day-to-day; (3) if no "source food" is identified at the retail level, then the bacteria was introduced in the restaurant setting, meaning either poor personal hygiene or a break-down in proper food handling and sanitation.
Rodent and insect infestation, leaks, poor plumbing, and of course a sick employee (a recent CDC report found this to be the number one cause of food poisoning in restaurants), can also lead to these outbreaks.
Our firm brought this lawsuit to recover for our client, but ALSO to help uncover what happened so we can work to prevent this form happening again.
E. Coli is Dangerous - and can be Life Threatening
E. coli can be deadly, especially in the young who develop hemolytic uremic syndrome. The elderly and infirm are also at very high risk of developing complications. And in 5-6 %, the development of post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome is likely.
Since any lawsuit is a "one-bite" at the apple situation, we will take the time the thoroughly evaluate the medical condition of each of our Miguel's Cocina clients, to investigate what went wrong at Miguel's Cocina that allowed E. coli to become so prevalent, and work to recover the maximum recovery possible. People who pay to sit down and enjoy a meal should not become victims of such a serious disease!
