E. Coli Linked To NC State Fair Livestock Building

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The E. coli outbreak in North Carolina that has sickened 27 people has officially been linked to the Kelley Livestock Building on the State Fair grounds.

Investigators with the North Carolina Division of Public Health were able to utilize a 21-page questionnaire to help them quickly focus in on the Kelley Building as the source of the E. coli O157:H7 outbreak. State Epidemiologists have determined that the likely source of the infections was the Kelley Building, a permanent roofed structure that hosted livestock competitions and housed sheep, goats, and pigs during the North Carolina State Fair.

According to State Epidemiologists, the infections were likely transmitted by animal contact in the Kelley Building, but they did not identify any specific breed animal or breed in the outbreak.

The case study involved the 27 people who were sickened by the outbreak and 87 fairgoers who were not. Using the 21-page questionnaire investigators were able to target specific activities that the 27 ill people had in common to zero in on the source of the outbreak.

Of the 27 people sickened by the outbreak, two remained in the hospital as of yesterday, but they were unsure if that number included a 2-year old that was released from the hospital yesterday afternoon or not.

E. coli O157:H7 occurs in the intestines of ruminant animals (those with four stomaches) including cable, sheep, and goats. It is released from the body in the animals feces and can be transmitted to anyone coming into direct contact with the infected feces or anything that it has come into contact with such as dirt, animal bedding, mulch, etc.

This is now the third outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 that has been traced back to the North Carolina State Fair in the past seven years. In 2004 an outbreak was traced back to the petting zoo was responsible for sickening 108 fairgoers. In 2006 three more fairgoers were infected with the strain that is thought to have occurred at the pita stand.

After the 2004 E. coli outbreak state officials installed public hand-washing stations throughout the fairgrounds near animal exhibits and erected double fencing to keep people out of bedding areas in the petting zoo. Steve Troxler, North Carolina’s Agricultural Commissioner since 2005, is ultimately responsible for the state fair. He has promised that additional safeguards will be put in place. “People come to the State Fair with a certain amount of trust,” Troxler said. “We certainly want to keep that trust with the public and be very proactive in doing anything we can do.”

The  best defense against the risk of being exposed to E. coli at petting zoos and other areas where ruminant animal are housed is frequent hand-washing. You must remain vigilant in hand-washing when you are near these animals, one slip could leave you exposed.

Source: WRAL, NCDHHS, WEAN

Related articles

• NC E.coli O157:H7 Update – Now at 26 Cases (thechefstableblog.com)
• NC State Fair ruled as source for E. coli outbreak (charlotte.news14.com)