--- title: "Three Seattle-area E. coli Outbreaks – 2 unknown, 1 linked to Torero’s Mexican Restaurant" date: 2022-11-10T20:49:54-08:00 author: Bill Marler canonical_url: "https://marlerclark.com/news_events/three-seattle-area-e-coli-outbreaks-2-unknown-1-linked-to-toreros-mexican-restaurant" section: News --- [All News](/news_events) / [](https://marlerclark.com/news_events) / # Three Seattle-area E. coli Outbreaks – 2 unknown, 1 linked to Torero’s Mexican Restaurant **Unknown E. coli Outbreak:** Public Health is investigating a new outbreak of people infected with Shiga toxin-producing *E. coli* (also known as STEC) in King County. All but one case has been reported since June 26, 2022. Currently all of the cases are among people are from East African communities. The investigation is ongoing. The majority of ill people have reported eating multiple types of meat, including goat and ground beef, during their exposure period but we cannot rule out other possible sources at this time. Confirmed cases have been linked through genetic fingerprinting results (whole genome sequencing) which indicate that they have the same genetic strain, meaning they likely have a common source of infection. Probable cases have been linked epidemiologically (share a common food source and live with a confirmed case) but have not yet been confirmed via genetic fingerprinting. Updates will be posted when more information is available. All people developed symptoms consistent with STEC, including diarrhea (often bloody), abdominal cramping, nausea, and vomiting. All but one of the cases had illness onsets from June 20-August 17, 2022. One additional person was identified by WGS with an onset in December 2021. Three children developed a type of kidney complication called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). All people have recovered or are currently recovering. **Torero’s Mexican Restaurant E. coli Outbreak:** Public Health is investigated an outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing *E. coli*(also known as STEC) associated with diarrhea and abdominal pain at Torero’s Mexican Restaurant in Renton. Since September 5, 2022, 3 people from 3 separate meal parties reported becoming ill after eating food from Torero’s Mexican Restaurant in Renton on September 3, 2022 and September 7, 2022. All of the people developed one or more symptoms consistent with STEC, including diarrhea (often bloody), abdominal cramping, nausea, and vomiting. We did not identify any ill employees. Environmental Health Investigators visited the restaurant on September 30, 2022. Investigators identified inadequate handwashing facilities and improper storage of raw meats as potential risk factors for this outbreak. All critical violations were corrected during the inspection. On October 3, 2022, Environmental Health Investigators revisited the facility and ensured proper compliance with food handling practices. No ill employees were identified at the time of the inspection. Investigators reviewed with restaurant management the requirement that ill staff are not allowed to work until they are symptom-free for at least 24 hours. Investigators provided education about preventing the spread of STEC — including proper handwashing, preventing bare hand contact with ready-to-eat foods, and preventing cross contamination during food preparation. All of the cases had confirmatory testing indicating infections with Shiga toxin-producing *E. coli* (STEC) via culture. All confirmed cases had the same strain of STEC, based on genetic fingerprinting (whole genome sequencing or WGS) at the Washington State Public Health Laboratory. **Unknown E. coli Outbreak:** Public Health is investigating an outbreak of three people infected with Shiga toxin-producing*E. coli* O157:H7 (also known as STEC). Between October 4 – 16, 2022, 3 people from 3 separate households reported becoming ill. Cases have been among people ranging in age from 18 to 36 years old. Symptoms reported include diarrhea and abdominal pain. The investigation is ongoing, and no source has been identified. Two of the three ill people report eating dishes that were prepared with raw or undercooked beef, but we cannot rule out other possible sources at this time. Confirmed cases have been linked through genetic fingerprinting results (whole genome sequencing) which indicate that they have the same genetic strain, meaning they likely have a common source of infection. All three people developed one or more symptoms consistent with STEC, including diarrhea (often bloody), abdominal cramping, nausea, and vomiting. Cases had illness onset dates from September 21 – October 12, 2022. All the cases are from separate households. All of the cases have confirmatory testing indicating infections with Shiga toxin-producing *E. coli* O157:H7 via culture. 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