Asheville North Carolina Salmonella Outbreak Has Investigators Scrambling to Find Food Source
Attorney Fred Pritzker 
Asheville, North Carolina, is the center of a growing Salmonella Parathypi B outbreak that has disease investigators and food poisoning attorneys digging to identify what is causing people in Buncombe County to get sick.
North Carolina Salmonella outbreak investigators do not believe the outbreak has peaked yet and 29 people — including two in South Carolina — already have been identified as having been infected by the outbreak strain of Salmonella Parathyphi B. Experts, including officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are reviewing laboratory reports and inspecting food sources that may be linked to the outbreak. In addition, epidemiologists are interviewing those who became ill to extract detailed food histories that can be compared in search of common denominators.
So far, the Buncombe County Department of Health has only said that the outbreak is central to people who live in the county or visited there since February 28, 2012. Determining the cause of the outbreak will thwart it.
Food poisoning law firm Pritzker Olsen Attorneys also is investigating the outbreak and is encouraging anyone who has fallen ill with Paratyphi B symptoms in the Asheville area and greater Buncombe County to immediately see a physician. Antibiotics can be used for treatment but are not always 100 percent effective. Doctors in the Asheville area of western North Carolina have been alerted to be on the lookout for cases.
For answers to legal questions about pursuing claims against the party or parties responsible for the outbreak, call Pritzker Olsen at 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or initiate contact online with one of our attorneys for a free case consultation.
Salmonella Paratyphi B, found in the intestines of humans, can be spread from person to person or by eating food or water contaminated with the feces of a person with an infection. Any food can become contaminated at any point in the food chain, including at home or in restaurants. Contamination can occur when a person infected with Salmonella Paratyphi B handles food and does not wash their hands well after using the bathroom.
Symptoms include diarrhea (sometimes bloody), escalating fever, fatigue, headache, loss of appetite, and stomach pain. They usually begin about 6 days after exposure but may not begin for as long as 30 days. Babies, young children, older adults and others who have underdeveloped or compromised immune systems are most at risk for serious complications from an infection of Salmonella Paratyphi B.
Second Salmonella Bacteria Found in Raw Tuna Scrape
Fred Pritzker
Public health officials have discovered a second type of Salmonella bacteria in the recalled raw tuna scrape that has sickened at least 200 people and hospitalized 28 in 21 states and the District of Columbia. The announcement was made in the April 26, 2012 update by the CDC.
The recalled raw tuna, called Nakaochi Scrape, was imported from India by Moon Marine USA Corporation. The multi-state outbreak caused by Salmonella Bareilly, which was found in patient’s stool samples and in the tuna, has been the focus of the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention since early April.
But there was another, much smaller outbreak occurring at the same time. Ten people in five states were sickened by the same strain of Salmonella Nchanga, a serotype of the bacteria that is extremely rare in the United States.
Good old detective work solved this case. Public health officials interviewed the patients. Of the five people they talked to, all had eaten sushi the week before becoming ill. Since only 5% of the population eats sushi on a regular basis, that product was immediately suspect.
Investigators tested the sample of Moon Marine USA Corporation’s raw tuna scrape and found Salmonella Nchanga. And pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), which is the process used to “fingerprint” bacteria’s DNA, yielded a match with the bacteria that sickened the patients.
The two investigations are now going to be combined into one. The epidemiological curve (epi curve) of the investigation has changed, with more cases now expected. The update, released April 26, 2012, most likely does not include anyone sickened after March 27, 2012.
According to the epi curve, investigators estimate that there will be at least 56 more lab-confirmed cases of Salmonella Bareilly and Salmonella Nchanga infections before this outbreak ends.
This raw yellowfin tuna product, used to make spicy tuna rolls and other types of sushi, may still be in grocery store and restaurant freezers. If you choose to eat this product, ask the proprietors about its origin to make sure it’s not part of this recall.
If you do suffer the symptoms of Salmonella food poisoning, see your doctor. Then call me and my experienced Salmonella lawyers for a free consultation to protect your legal rights. These cases can be complicated, so you need attorneys who understand food safety law and food poisoning cases to make sure you are fully and fairly compensated.
Contact us using our web form, or call toll free 1-800-377-8900.
Raw Tuna Scrape Lawsuit: CDC Updates Investigation
Attorney Fred Pritzker 
The CDC has just updated their investigation into the Salmonella outbreak linked to raw tuna scrape imported by Moon Marine USA Corporation.
Now 200 people have been sickened in 21 states and the District of Columbia. Twenty-eight people have been hospitalized. The state of Vermont has been added to the outbreak count. The case count is:
- Alabama (2)
- Arkansas (1)
- Connecticut (8)
- District of Columbia (2)
- Florida (1)
- Georgia (9)
- Illinois (15)
- Louisiana (3)
- Maryland (20)
- Massachusetts (24)
- Mississippi (2)
- Missouri (4)
- New Jersey (18)
- New York (33)
- North Carolina (3)
- Pennsylvania (7)
- Rhode Island (6)
- South Carolina (3)
- Texas (4)
- Virginia (9)
- Vermont (1)
- Wisconsin (15)
Another type of Salmonella bacteria has been found in the raw tuna scrape. Salmonella Nchanga, which is very rare in the United States, has sickened 10 people in five states. The case count for this bacteria is:
- Georgia (2)
- New Jersey (1)
- New York (5)
- Virginia (1)
- Wisconsin (1)
The outbreak caused by this different bacteria was going on at the same time as the outbreak caused by Salmonella Bareilly. Public health officials interviewed patients and found that 50% of them had eaten sushi the week before becoming ill. Salmonella Nchanga was then found in samples of the raw tuna; this new bacteria matched the bacteria taken from patient’s stool samples. So investigators have combined the two investigations and will now refer to these bacteria as “the outbreak strains”.
Contact Fred for a free Salmonella case review.Any illnesses that have occurred after March 27, 2012 may not be included in this case count total because it takes a few weeks before illnesses are reported to authorities. Anyone who ate raw tuna and then experienced the symptoms of Salmonella food poisoning, including diarrhea, abdominal cramps, fever, and sometimes vomiting, should see their doctor.
Anyone injured in this outbreak deserves full and fair legal compensation. Contact me and my experienced Salmonella lawyers for a free consultation to protect your legal rights. You can also call us toll free at 1-888-377-8900.
Salmonella in Recalled Raw Tuna Scrape Matched to Salmonella in Victims
Fred Pritzker
Contact Fred about a sushi tuna recall lawsuit: 1-888-377-8900 (toll free).
The bacteria was found in a sample of spicy tuna roll made with the recalled tuna imported from India by Moon Marine USA Corporation. In PFGE, the bacteria’s DNA is cut into smaller pieces and placed in agraose, a jelly-like substance. Electricity is sent through the agraose in several different directions, which separates the DNA into a unique pattern.
Every outbreak strain of bacteria has a different PFGE pattern because bacteria mutate easily. If the PFGE pattern from bacteria found in a contaminated product lines up with the pattern from bacteria taken from an ill person’s stool sample, that is considered a genetic match.
In this case, the match establishes the bacteria found in the raw tuna scrape as the source of the outbreak.
More than 160 people in 20 states and the District of Columbia have been sickened in this current outbreak. The raw tuna, which was imported frozen in large lots, was broken down into smaller lots by Moon Marine USA. Since many of the smaller lots were not labeled, public health officials are concerned that the product may still be in freezers at grocery stores and restaurants around the country.
If you purchase any raw tuna product from a grocery store or restaurant, ask to make sure it is not part of this recall.
And if you or a family member ate any raw tuna product in the last several months and then exhibited the symptoms of Salmonella food poisoning, please see a doctor. Then call my team of experienced Salmonella lawyers for a free consultation to protect your legal rights. You can also call toll free 1-888-377-8900.
Salmonella food poisoning can be severe. Victims can become very ill and die. Survivors can suffer lifelong effects of this food poisoning, including colitis, blood infections, and Reiter’s syndrome, which can cause reactive arthritis and eye irritation. Anyone injured after eating a contaminated product deserves full and fair compensation. Contact us for a free consultation.
Raw Scraped Tuna: Testing of Imported Seafood Questioned
Fred Pritzker
The raw scraped tuna that is linked to the outbreak of Salmonella Bareilly food poisoning that has sickened 160 people and hospitalized 26 in 20 states and the District of Columbia was imported from India. Moon Marine USA Corporation, located in Cupertino, California, imported the fish and distributed it around the country.
The safety of imported food has been questioned by many experts. The Food Safety Modernization Act of 2010 was supposed to increase the strength of imported food inspections, but one critical rule has been delayed by the Office of Budget and Management. The FDA has posted FDA staff to several countries around the world to help improve the safety of imported foods. Several offices opened in 2008 and 2009 in China, India, Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East to check on facilities that process food.
Contact Fred for a free Salmonella case review.But only 2% of imported seafood is inspected as it enters the United States. A study conducted by the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future found that the government’s imported seafood testing is “inadequate”.
Since the raw scraped tuna, also called Nakaochi Scrape, was chopped or ground, any bacteria contaminating its surface was mixed all throughout the product. Freezing doesn’t kill the Salmonella bacteria that was on the fish. So it was thawed and used to make sushi products such as spicy tuna roll. And sickened many people.
That tuna was recalled on April 14, 2012. More than 58,000 pounds of the product are part of that recall. Since much of the tuna was broken down into smaller lots without labels, tracking all of the recalled product may be difficult, and some grocery stores and restaurants may still have it in their freezers.
The symptoms of Salmonella food poisoning include diarrhea, sometimes bloody, fever, and abdominal cramps. The illness begins 12 to 72 hours after eating the contaminated product. While many people recover, others must be hospitalized. And the long term effects of Salmonella poisoning can be severe, including Reiter’s Syndrome which can cause reactive arthritis, sepsis, and even death. Anyone who suffered in this outbreak deserves fair and just compensation. Contact me or my associates online or by calling 1-888-377-8900.
If you or someone in your family was sickened after eating sushi or any raw tuna product, contact our experienced Salmonella lawyers for a free consultation to protect your legal rights.
