5-year-old child falls extremely ill with Salmonella poisoning after consuming cucumbers from a local grocery store; He is one of 418 victims affected by the current outbreak.
As of September 18, 2015, Marler Clark LLP, the Food Safety Law Firm based in Seattle, has filed their eighth lawsuit against Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce, Inc., a corporation based in San Diego, CA. William D. Marler, managing partner at Marler Clark, is representing Utah residents Meghann and Jesse Mills, on behalf of their 5-year-old child, C.M., after he fell extremely ill after consuming a contaminated cucumber that was manufactured and distributed by Andrew & Williamson. The case number is 2:15-cv-00675-RJS.
On or about August 19, 2015, five-year-old C.M. fell ill after he consumed Salmonella-tainted cucumbers, most likely purchased at a local Macey’s grocery store. By early afternoon, he began to vomit, and developed explosive diarrhea. He was intensely nauseated and suffered from abdominal cramping, and the onset of a fever. For five days, C.M. remained in pain.
On or about Monday, August 25, C.M.’s appearance began to change – his eyes appeared sunken, and he had lost significant weight. He maintained a stiff neck, which frightened C.M.’s parents, as it is a symptom of meningitis. On August 27, Meghann and Jesse took C.M. to his pediatrician, even though he was feeling slightly better, although had no appetite. That evening, C.M. began screaming in the bathroom when he discovered blood in the toilet and told his mother it hurt to urinate. Meghann called the pediatrician, who advised her to get C.M. to Primary Children’s ER.
C.M.’s bloody urination became worse, and C.M.’s temperature continued to rise to about 105 degrees. Meghann took C.M. to the hospital, where he was treated for his dehydration and other symptoms until August 29, 2015, when he was released from the hospital. His bladder remained swollen, and C.M. received intravenous antibiotics. After his discharge, C.M.’s symptoms did not improve. His urine now contained large clots of blood, which he struggled in pain to discharge. This lasted for days, and C.M. was referred to a nephrologist for further treatment. During that time, C.M.’s urine began to clear, although he was fatigued and carried a low-grade fever.
On September 11, 2015, all of C.M.’s symptoms had returned. After consulting with his doctor, Meghann and Jesse learned that C.M. had contracted a urinary tract infection that stemmed from the Salmonella Poona bacteria, which was the same strain of Salmonella linked back to cucumbers originating from Andrew & Williamson. On that day, C.M. was placed back on a 14-day course of antibiotics, although he continued to have a fever and painful urination with clots of blood until about two days later. C.M. is continuing to receive treatment for his ongoing illness.
“Salmonella is a nasty bacteria,” said food safety attorney and Salmonella expert, Bill Marler. “Aside from the immediate symptoms like nausea and diarrhea,” he continued, “The bacteria can morph into a variety of chronic infections, spurring onsets of joint pain, arthritis, and in this case, a very severe urinary tract infection. The symptoms do tend to be more severe with victims whose immune systems are already compromised, such as infants and the elderly, but this can really happen to anyone. ”
As of September 15, 2015, a total of 418 illnesses from Salmonella Poona have been reported from 31 states. The victims of the outbreak include: Alaska (10), Arizona (72), Arkansas (6), California (89), Colorado (16), Hawaii (1), Idaho (14), Illinois (6), Indiana (2), Kansas (1), Kentucky (1), Louisiana (4), Minnesota (20), Missouri (8), Montana (13), Nebraska (2), Nevada (9), New Mexico (22), New York (4), North Dakota (2), Ohio (2), Oklahoma (10), Oregon (8), Pennsylvania (2), South Carolina (8), Texas (20), Utah (37), Virginia (1), Washington (15), Wisconsin (9), and Wyoming (4).
So far, The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that about 31% of these victims have been hospitalized, and three deaths have been reported from Arizona (1), California (1) and Texas (1).
Bill Marler, food safety attorney representing the Mills family, has already been contacted by over a dozen victims affected by this outbreak. This is the eighth lawsuit Marler has filed against Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce Inc.
Salmonella is the second most common foodborne illness in the United States. Approximately 1.4 million cases of Salmonella occur each year with 95% of those caused by tainted food. The acute symptoms of Salmonella include the sudden onset of nausea, abdominal cramping, and bloody diarrhea and mucous over a period of days. While there is no cure, infected persons usually recover completely, although it may take months. A small number of people experience ongoing symptoms such as joint pain, which can lead to chronic arthritis.
Marler has been an advocate for victims of foodborne illnesses since representing those made sickest by an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 traced back to fast food giant, Jack in the Box. He has since represented thousands of victims of Salmonella and other foodborne illnesses.
Marler Clark, The Food Safety Law Firm, is the nation’s leading law firm representing victims of Salmonella outbreaks. The Salmonella lawyers of Marler Clark have represented thousands of victims of Salmonella and other foodborne illness outbreaks, and have recovered over $600 million for clients. Marler Clark is the only law firm in the nation with a practice focused exclusively on foodborne illness litigation. Marler Clark attorneys have litigated Salmonella cases stemming from outbreaks traced to a variety of foods, such as cantaloupe, tomatoes, ground turkey, salami, sprouts, cereal, peanut butter, and food served in restaurants. The firm has brought Salmonella lawsuits against companies such as Cargill, ConAgra, Peanut Corporation of America, Sheetz, Taco Bell, Subway and Wal-Mart.