Wood County has had an E. coli outbreak, which is under investigation by the health department.
Health Commissioner Ben Robison said that in the last week there have been 15 cases, including five that required hospitalization. He reported on the outbreak at Thursday’s board of health meeting.
From Jan. 1 2016 to June 30, 2022, Wood County experienced a total of 27 E. coli cases.
“In the last week, we’ve had 15,” Robison said, adding that he expected the number to grow. “We are in the very front end of starting an investigation as to what is happening.
“It’s a significant concern,” he said. “We’re seeing a number of gastrointestinal illnesses.”
The health department has engaged with the state health department for assistance, he said.
“At this point, what we know, is that there is a substantially higher number of cases than what we should be seeing,” Robison said. “We’re seeing three years worth of cases (in the last week).”
The initial investigation is to determine whether the cases are linked, he said.
“We’re moving quickly, but intentionally. We want to be sure that we get to the cause of this,” Robison said. “But it is a substantial concern, as of right now.”
Earlier in the meeting, board member Dallas Ziegler said that his nephew became violently ill with a gastrointestinal issue after eating at the Wood County Fair last week and was hospitalized. The family reported the case to the health department and an investigation was started, Ziegler said.
Robison said no conclusions can be drawn this early in the investigation.
“Going back to your comments, Dallas, we are seeing a number of gastrointestinal illnesses, and there is a perception sometimes the last place you ate is the place that caused your illness.
“But with E. coli, it can be up to 10 days after you ate there, before you develop illness,” Robison said.
In a follow-up interview, Robison reiterated that it is early in the investigation.
“We have no reason to believe that the fair is the cause,” he said.
He said the 15 cases are all Wood County residents, who do not live in the same area. The age range is 13-60.
“We haven’t seen anything that quite distinct. If we had that, we probably would be done,” Robison said.
They are trying to identify links.
“The first of which is whether these come from the same strain or not,” he said. “When you have a cluster of cases that we’re seeing, you’ve got to be sure that there is a connection between them.”
Some results may be known by Tuesday, Robison said.
“Really, it’s going to depend upon the complexities that we encounter,” he said. “Our intention is to move as quickly as we can … but we’re not sure what that timeline is.”
There is a link on the health department website to report symptoms that are due to E. coli: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/XB8DR8F
