--- title: "The August 2008 Locust Grove, OK Outbreak of E. coli 0111–One Year Later" date: 2009-08-24T08:12:53-07:00 author: Bill Marler canonical_url: "https://marlerclark.com/news_events/the-august-2008-locust-grove-ok-outbreak-of-e-coli-0111one-year-later" section: News --- [All News](/news_events) / [Outbreaks](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/outbreaks) / # The August 2008 Locust Grove, OK Outbreak of E. coli 0111–One Year Later ![](http://www.marlerblog.com/uploads/image/Picture%201(160).png)**Kim Archer of the** [**Tulsa World**](http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=17&articleid=20090823_17_A1_TeCuty138405) **has done a great job of recalling the horrors of the United States’ largest** [**E. coli O111** ](http://www.about-ecoli.com/)**outbreak.** **• 341 were sickened** **• 70 people were hospitalized, including 22 children** **• 17 people received kidney dialysis, including eight children** **• 1 man died** **![](http://www.marlerblog.com/uploads/image/20090823_ecolib_package.jpg)Excerpts from the Article about just one of the victims:** *His entire life, Kenneth Birkes has worked seven days a week from dawn to dark. Then he ate a meal in honor of his father’s 85th birthday at Country Cottage in Locust Grove. It was Sunday, Aug. 17, 2008. Five days later, Birkes fell ill. The 61-year-old Grove man hasn’t worked since.* *"I was up in Kansas to get a drilling rig out in the country," he said. "It hit me so quick." He had just put the rig on a trailer and driven to the town of Edna, all the while calling his wife to tell her he needed help.* *"That’s really the last thing I remember," Birkes said. His wife initially took him to a hospital in Coffeyville, Kan., but he continued to get worse. He didn’t wake up until six weeks later at St. Francis Hospital.* *Birkes said he went from making $12,000 a month to nothing.* *"This pretty well wiped us out," he said. After three months in the hospital, he had to learn to walk again. Now, he has migraines four days a week and is only able to go three hours at a time before needing to rest.* *"I’m still alive, and that’s all that matters," Birkes said.* *Birkes is among a group of clients of Seattle attorney Bill Marler asking for a settlement from the restaurant’s insurance company.* *"If they turn us down, we have no choice but to sue the restaurant and the owners for the policy and all personal assets," Marler said.* ### Other E. coli Lawsuits [Raw Farms linked to another Raw Milk Cheese E.coli Outbreak - 9 People sickened - Company refuses to recall product](https://marlerclark.com/raw-farms-linked-to-another-raw-milk-cheese-e-coli-outbreak-7-people-sickened) [10 with E. coli linked to Cheese](https://marlerclark.com/3-with-e-coli-linked-to-cheese) [Sycamore Pool in Chico California Contaminated with E.coli - Two teens in ICU](https://marlerclark.com/sycamore-pool-in-chico-california-contaminated-with-e-coli-two-teens-in-icu) [Deadly Nationwide E.coli Outbreak 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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. E. coli O157:H7 may be the most notorious serotype of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC), but there are at least... ###### [Sources of E. coli](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/sources-of-e-coli) Where do E. coli O157:H7 and non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) come from? The primary reservoirs, or ultimate sources, of E. coli O157:H7 and non-O157 STEC in nature are... ###### [Transmission of and Infection with E. coli](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/transmission-of-and-infection-with-e-coli) While many dairy cattle-associated foodborne disease outbreaks are linked to raw milk and other raw dairy products (e.g., cheeses, butter, ice cream), dairy cattle still represent a source of contamination... ##### Outbreak Database #### Looking for a comprehensive list of outbreaks? 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. 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