E. coli outbreak in Calgary daycares: Everything we know
Global News
Nearly a dozen Calgary daycares that share a central kitchen have reported an outbreak of E.coli, but the exact source of the bacteria remains unknown.
An outbreak of E.coli at multiple daycares in Calgary has resulted in numerous hospitalizations and left officials perplexed at the exact source.
As of Wednesday afternoon, 96 lab-confirmed E.coli cases were linked to the outbreak, according to Calgary Zone medical officer of health Dr. Franco Rizzuti.
The number is a significant jump from the 56 reported cases on Tuesday.
More children have also been hospitalized as the week has gone on, 22 reported to be in hospital Wednesday, seven more than Tuesday. Sixteen of the kids are at the Alberta Children’s Hospital while six are at the pediatric ward of the Peter Lougheed Centre.
Rizzuti said a “handful” of children in hospital have developed more serious outcomes of their Shiga toxin-producing E. coli infection. He did not provide details on what those more serious outcomes were or how many, but noted that hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) is among the possibilities.
Alberta Health Services (AHS) has not yet identified a source of the infection. The Calgary Zone MOH said health inspectors were at the central kitchen linked to all of the daycares on Tuesday, taking food samples for further testing.
In total, 11 daycares have been shuttered “until issues are resolved.”
Rizzuti noted that when he declared the outbreak over the weekend, following multiple reports from hospitals of children with bloody diarrhea, the kitchen was in compliance with health inspections.
