Romaine Lettuce E. Coli Outbreak Kills 1 Californian

CALIFORNIA --- One person in California died as a result of the E. coli outbreak linked to romaine lettuce, health officials announced Wednesday. Across the country, a total of 121 people have fallen ill as a result of eating the vegetable, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Last month, the CDC warned California consumers to not eat or buy romaine lettuce, unless they can confirm it was not grown in the Yuma, Arizona, region. The warning include whole heads and hearts of romaine lettuce, in addition to chopped romaine, salads and salad mixes containing romaine.

Health officials said the outbreak began on March 13 across multiple states including, Washington, Montana, Idaho and New York. Ill people range in age from 1 to 88 years, with a median age of 29. Sixty-three percent of ill people are female.

Of 102 people with information available, 52 have been hospitalized, including 14 people who developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a type of kidney failure, officials said.

You can find more information about the outbreak here.

--Photo via Shutterstock; Patch reporter Renee Schiavone contributed to this report