Mazow & McCullough, PC’s E. coli lawyers were recently retained to represent the Estate of a New Hampshire woman who ate ground beef tainted with E. Coli. This wrongful death action resulted from Carolyn purchasing ground beef from a New Hampshire supermarket in late September 2009. She became ill in early October 2009 and spent nearly thirty days suffering in a New Hampshire Hospital. While hospitalized, Carolyn tested positive for E. coli O157:H7. Carolyn never went home and died on October 30, 2009 from complications arising from E. Coli bacteria.
The ground beef purchased and eaten by Carolyn had been produced by Fairbank Farms in Ashville, NY. On October 31, Fairbank Farms recalled 545,699 pounds of fresh ground beef products for potential E. coli contamination. The U.S. Department of Agriculture stated that “The recall was based on an ongoing investigation by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and Connecticut, Main, and Massachusetts state health and agriculture departments into a cluster of E. coli O157:H7 infections.”
By November 3, 2009, the CDC announced that at least 28 people from 12 states had become infected with a matching strain of E. coli O157:H7. Further DNA testing on the bacteria isolated from ill individuals continued. In December 2009, the New Hampshire Department of Public Health confirmed that the strain that killed Carolyn matched the strain found in the Fairbank Farms ground beef she ate.
Mazow & McCullough, PC are working closely with a microbiologist as well as the CDC and New Hampshire Department of Public Health to ensure that the appropriate parties are held responsible for Carolyn’s death
Of the 28 people who have become ill with E. coli O157:H7 during this outbreak, 26 became ill between September 17 and October 10, 2009. Six patients were reportedly hospitalized due to their E. coli infections, and three developed hemolytic uremic syndrome. Two deaths have been reported to be associated with the outbreak.
Contact our law firm about an E. coli lawsuit question. The recalled Fairbank Farms beef has been associated with E. coli cases in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine and New Hampshire. Because this recall is so large and the hamburger and other products so widely distributed, the outbreak connected to this recall may spread to many other states.
