--- title: Spokane E. coli investigation continues date: 2008-01-08T02:53:37-08:00 author: Bill Marler canonical_url: "https://marlerclark.com/news_events/spokane-e-coli-investigation-continues-2" section: News --- [All News](/news_events) / [Outbreaks](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/outbreaks) / # Spokane E. coli investigation continues The Associated PressSPOKANE — Investigators for an insurance company began inspecting a Spokane Produce plant this week as the building remained partially closed after an E. coli outbreak. The team will take samples, look for problems and suggest ways to reduce contamination risks, said Mansour Samadpour, a consultant hired by the insurance company. Samadpour specializes in rapid detection of outbreaks of infectious diseases and identification of outbreak culprits. He is an assistant professor of environmental health at the University of Washington. A critical step in fresh-cut produce processing is washing, which typically is done in cold, chlorinated water, said Samadpour. "These issues usually go back to the farm," Samadpour said Tuesday. There is little government oversight of irrigation water quality on produce farms, he said. The outbreak of the E. coli bacterium sickened more than 40 girls who attended a drill team camp at Eastern Washington University in mid-July. Some of the girls spread the illness to several more people at a church camp the next week. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration alerted consumers July 29 to throw out cut, packaged romaine lettuce from Spokane Produce. None of the lettuce was tested by investigators before the alert. But surveys and sales invoices linked the product to the drill team camp and to a sick woman in Walla Walla. In addition, bacterial samples from the sick people shared the same genetic fingerprint. There have been six separate E. coli cases in the state with the same genetic indicators, said Marcia Goldoft, a medical epidemiologist with the Washington Department of Health. The FDA is looking for food links in those additional cases, Goldoft said. "Were working to get information from (Spokane Produce)," said Charles Breen, the FDA's Seattle district director. "The investigation is not closed out." Bagged, prewashed salad is a $1.5 billion industry, said Jim Gorny, technical director for the International Fresh-cut Produce Association. If levels of disinfectant are too low in wash water, Gorny said, the washing process could spread bacteria. 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The team at Marler Clark is here to answer all your questions. Find out if you’re eligible for a lawsuit, what questions to ask your doctor, and more. [ Get a free consultation ](https://marlerclark.com/contact) ##### Related Resources ###### [E. coli Food Poisoning](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/e-coli-food-poisoning) What is E. coli and how does it cause food poisoning? Escherichia coli (E. coli) is a highly studied, common species of bacteria that belongs to the family Enterobacteriaceae, so... ###### [E. coli O157:H7](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/e-coli-o157h7) E. coli O157:H7 is a foodborne pathogen that causes food poisoning. E. coli O157:H7 is the most commonly identified and the most notorious Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) serotype in... ###### [Non-O157 STEC](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/non-o157-stec) Non-O157 Shiga Toxin-Producing E. coli can also cause food poisoning. 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