The Kansas City Star reports that the number of people who felt ill after visiting an Excelsior Springs hotel early this week has risen to 73, but preliminary tests do not indicate food-borne illness.
The samples that have been tested so far showed no salmonella, shigella, campylobacter or E. coli, Gary Zaborac, director of the Clay County Public Health Center, said Thursday. The agency is sending the samples to a state lab to be tested for signs of viral infection, and the hotel staff is aggressively cleaning the entire facility, officials said.
Testing began after 18 persons from William Jewell College’s cheerleading and dance retreat at the Elms Resort went to a hospital with gastric problems, fever and chills early Tuesday.