Â鶹ӰÊÓ

Skip to main content

Listeria warning issued after three deaths linked to contaminated ice cream machines

Three people have died and three others have been hospitalized after drinking milkshakes contaminated with Listeria bacteria from a restaurant in Tacoma, Washington, health officials say. (BSIP/Universal Images Group/Getty Images via CNN) Three people have died and three others have been hospitalized after drinking milkshakes contaminated with Listeria bacteria from a restaurant in Tacoma, Washington, health officials say. (BSIP/Universal Images Group/Getty Images via CNN)
Share

Three people have died and three others have been hospitalized after drinking milkshakes contaminated with Listeria bacteria from a restaurant in Tacoma, Washington, health officials say.

Investigators found the outbreak was linked to ice cream machines that were not cleaned properly at a Frugals restaurant in Tacoma, according to a Listeria can affect people up to 70 days after consumption and the machines were used through August 7, the release said.

CNN has reached out to Frugals but has not immediately heard back.

The six individuals were hospitalized between February 27 and July 22 and genetic fingerprinting from the bacteria inside the milkshakes showed it was the same strain of Listeria that triggered the hospitalizations, the health department says.

Two of the three who survived said they had a milkshake from the same Frugals in Tacoma before getting sick.

Symptoms of Listeria infection include fever and muscle aches, and sometimes diarrhea or other gastrointestinal problems. Other symptoms are headache, confusion and convulsions.

The health department said no other Frugals restaurants are believed to be affected by the outbreak.

Anyone who ate at the Tacoma restaurant between May 29 and Aug. 7 and is showing symptoms of Listeria is urged to contact a doctor, the agency cautioned.

According to the, the Listeria monocytogene bacteria causes an estimated 1,600 cases of listeriosis in the United States annually. Around 260 people die from the disease each year.

It typically affects older adults, pregnant women, infants and adults with compromised immune systems.

Pregnant women are approximately to get listeriosis, and pregnant Hispanic women are 24 times more likely, according to the CDC.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

Unusual flippered feet are making their way into the Saint Lawrence River this weekend. Led by underwater explorer and filmmaker Nathalie Lasselin, volunteer divers are combing the riverbed near Beauharnois in Montérégie to remove hundreds of tires that have been polluting the aquatic environment for decades.

A body has been found in the vicinity where a woman went missing on the Ottawa River near Pembroke, Ont. while kayaking Tuesday night, according to the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP).

A man is facing numerous drug trafficking charges after Dufferin OPP seized a large assortment of drugs and weapons in Orangeville earlier this week.

Local Spotlight

Cole Haas is more than just an avid fan of the F.W. Johnson Wildcats football team. He's a fixture on the sidelines, a source of encouragement, and a beloved member of the team.

Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.