Subway Salmonella Outbreak
Subway restaurants in Illinois—one of which was the site of a major Shigella outbreak in February and March—have been linked to at least 97 confirmed cases of Salmonella Hvittingfoss. The confirmed cases are from at least 28 Illinois counties. Additionally, 24 of the confirmed 97 Salmonella infections in this outbreak have required hospitalization for treatment of their illnesses.
The strain of Salmonella involved in the outbreak is called Hvittingfoss, which is an extremely rare strain of Salmonella typically seen in Illinois only once or twice a year. Subway has voluntarily withdrawn certain fresh produce items (i.e. lettuce, green peppers, red onion, and tomatoes) from its Illinois stores, due to fears that, based on the epidemiological patterning of illnesses, the outbreak is linked to one of the produce items. The state has required food workers at the 46 restaurants currently associated with the outbreak to receive two consecutive tests that are negative for Salmonella Hvittingfoss before returning to work.
The 28 counties having Subway restaurants associated with confirmed Salmonella illnesses are Bureau, Cass, Champaign, Christian, Coles, Dekalb, DeWitt, Fulton, Henry, Kane, Knox, LaSalle, Livingston, Macon, Marshall, McLean, Moultrie, Ogle, Peoria, Rock Island, Sangamon, Schuyler, Shelby, Tazewell, Vermilion, Warren, Will and Winnebago. Illnesses are reported to have started between May 14 and May 25 and cases range in age from 2-years to 79-years-old.
Consumers experiencing symptoms of Salmonella infection should contact their heathcare provider for a stool test. The test will determine if Salmonella is present, and if so, if it is connected to the existing outbreak.
Marler Clark filed a Salmonella lawsuit on behalf of one of the victims on June 21, 2010.