Huntley High E. coli Outbreak Sickens 16, Linked To Cafeteria Worker

MCHENRY COUNTY, IL — An E. coli outbreak at Huntley High School has been linked back to a food handler in the cafeteria and incorrect hand washing practices likely leading to 16 students and staff members becoming ill in recent months, health officials announced Thursday.

In a final report on the E. coli outbreak from the McHenry County Department of Health, an investigation launched following the first reports of "Shiga-Toxin Producing E. coli" were reported in September detailed the steps taken to determine the likely cause of the outbreak.

The food handler, who worked at both the cold sandwich station, providing lettuce and cheese garnishes for sandwiches, and at the cookie station was confirmed through PCR testing to have been intermittently shedding STEC, Shiga toxin 2, according to the McHenry County Department of Health's report.

• E. Coli Outbreak Confirmed At Huntley High
  

The health department first launched its investigation on Sept. 17 after receiving a call from an Northwestern Medicine Hospital in Huntley emergency department physician regarding three Huntley High School students who were brought in with similar symptoms, including body aches, chills, abdominal discomfort and a fever. The symptoms progressed to watery diarrhea and minimal vomiting, and then to bloody stool.

In total, the outbreak affected 16 Huntley High students and staff members. Of those 16 people, 15 ate in the cafeteria, according to the health department's report.

During the course of the investigation, the high school cafeteria's cookie and cold sandwich stations were identified as sources for illness. From there, a food handler who worked at both stations was tested for illness, and it was determined the worker had been intermittently shedding STEC, Shiga toxin 2.

"In this illness outbreak, the likeliest scenario is that the infected food handler failed to wash their hands correctly, or thoroughly enough, or frequently enough, which resulted in contamination of either surfaces (trays, utensils food packaging, etc.) or food items at the cold sub sandwich station and cookie station," according to the health department's report. "This allowed transmission of the pathogen either through contact with contaminated surfaces and/or ready-to-eat food items, which acted as fomites. Without a further cooking step after contamination, the pathogen remained viable and resulted in illness following consumption. STEC can be present for up to 16 months on surfaces without proper sanitization."

The outbreak was linked to a multi-state outbreak, according to health officials.

"However, this does not imply that the source for the multistate outbreak, which is unidentified to date, is the same as for the outbreak at HHS. It is likely that the multistate outbreak and the outbreak at HHS share a common source by a student or staff member of HHS becoming ill with STEC after exposure to the source of the multistate outbreak at an external location," health officials confirmed. "Once introduced into HHS, STEC was transmitted primarily through the HHS cafeteria."

STEC is typically transmitted through food, drinking water or recreational water that is contaminated by human or animal feces. A person can also transmit STEC with poor hand hygiene through direct contact by person-to-person or person to an object, including tables, food, utensils and desks that is contaminated by an infected individual and then transmission occurs when a healthy individual touches and/or consumes the fomite.

STEC is viable outside the host on fomite surfaces for one and 1.5 hours to sixteen months.

Shiga Toxin-Producing E. coli is a bacterial infection known to cause gastrointestinal illness in humans. This strain of E. coli bacteria grows and lives in the intestines of people and animals. Transmission of STEC can occur due to contact with contaminated food, contaminated water, people, and animals.

Symptoms and characteristics of STEC include: diarrhea, which is often bloody; fever; abdominal cramping and body aches; vomiting; and headaches.

Symptoms typically start within three to four days of exposure, but may take up to ten days to develop. Most people infected with STEC feel better within five to 10 days from the onset of the illness with rest fluids.

The full health department report can be found here.