Chipotles close in Ore., Wash., after 22 sick from E. coli
PORTLAND, Ore. — Twenty-two cases of E. coli infection have been traced to Chipotle restaurants in Oregon and Washington, which closed abruptly Friday, health authorities said Saturday.
Since Oct. 14, three people in Clackamas and Washington counties in Oregon, both in suburban Portland, have fallen ill, said Jonathan Modie, Oregon Health Authority spokesman. And 19 cases in Clark County, which contains Vancouver, Wash., just north of Portland; Cowlitz County, north of Vancouver; King County, where Seattle is the largest city; and Skagit County about 50 miles north of King County, also have been reported.
About a third of the victims have been hospitalized, he said. No one has died from the Shiga toxin-producing E. coli bacteria, the most common in food-borne outbreaks.
"Many people affected with Shiga toxin E. coli may not seek health care, so the number of people made ill by this outbreak is likely more than identified," Modie said in a statement. "Health officials want people who have eaten at a Chipotle between Oct. 14 and 23 and become ill with vomiting and bloody diarrhea to see their health-care provider and mention this outbreak."
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The illnesses have been reported so far in people ranging from ages 11 to 64, he said.
State officials did not say which ingredient in Chipotle food might have caused the outbreak. But the Mexican restaurant chain that advertises no artificial ingredients has had other food-safety problems in the past three months:
• In August, 22 Minnesota Chipotle restaurants discovered to be the source of a salmonella Newport bacteria outbreak that causes diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps. At least 45 cases were reported; a month later health officials there said tomatoes were the cause.
• Also in August, 82 Chipotle customers and 17 employees at one restaurant in Simi Valley, Calif., were sickened with norovirus infections, which can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. That restaurant was closed for a day to clean up health code violations.
The company is facing lawsuits stemming from both of those incidents.
Hundreds of E. coli and similar bacteria strains live in humans' intestines. Most are harmless, but a few can cause serious problems.
The Oregon and Washington cases reported so far have come from six restaurants, but spokesman Chris Arnold of Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) in a statement Saturday that the company has closed 43 restaurants in two states to be extremely cautious. Denver-based Chipotle operates more than 1,700 restaurants in the U.S. and elsewhere.
"The vast majority of these restaurants have no reported problems," he said. "We are working with health department officials to determine the cause of this issue. We offer our deepest sympathies to those who have been affected by this situation."
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State officials said they did not require Chipotle to temporarily shutter its restaurants.
The news comes as Chipotle wanted to be making headlines for a different reason: the Chipotle Boorito Halloween challenge in which costumers can get a burrito for $3 if they come to any Chipotle across the USA wearing a costume with an unnecessary accessory. The event is intended to raise awareness of food additives.
Follow Mike Benner on Twitter: @MikeBennerKGW
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Minn. salmonella cases linked to Chipotle restaurants