Adult who got E. coli was hospitalized

More information surfaced on the two people sickened by E. coli bacteria after eating at a Chipotle restaurant in Turlock last month.

One was a Merced County man who was hospitalized at Doctors Medical Center in Modesto. County health officials said he reported eating at the Countryside Drive restaurant Oct. 19 and came down with symptoms four days later.

He was treated at the hospital for two days and was discharged.

A 6-year-old child, who also became ill, was with family members who visited the Turlock restaurant Oct. 22, according to the Stanislaus County environmental resources department. More information about the child’s illness was not available.

The two cases are the only ones known in California in an outbreak of foodborne illness that has sickened 43 people in six states.

Chipotle, a Denver-based chain, said 42 of the people sickened visited a Chipotle restaurant between Oct. 13 and Oct. 30; another person was reported to have eaten there Nov. 6.

Federal and state health officials continue to investigate the multistate outbreak of a bacteria strain called E. coli O26. According to the latest update, the cases of infection are linked to 17 restaurants in Oregon, Washington, Ohio, New York, Minnesota and California.

Chipotle had voluntarily closed a number of restaurants in Seattle and Portland, Ore., but later reopened them after extensive cleaning and safety precautions.

The Turlock eatery has remained open since the two cases of illness were reported last week. In an email Monday, a company spokesperson said the Turlock site was not closed because the exposure to the bacteria occurred weeks ago and ingredients that were a possible source of the bacteria have been replaced.

Officials have suspected the E. coli strain was in the beef, dairy products or other ingredients supplied to Chipotle restaurants.

According to a report on the Stanislaus County restaurant inspection Thursday, the child ate a burrito stuffed with barbacoa meat, rice, black and pinto beans, cheese, tomato, pico de gallo, tomatillo sauce and sour cream.

The county inspection found the restaurant’s food storage and cooking practices were in compliance with regulations. Food in the restaurant was stored in refrigerators at 38 degrees and hot food served to customers was held at 142 degrees.

During the inspection, the Turlock restaurant manager said precooked barbacoa meat in a sealed package is delivered to the site up to twice a week. The meat is taken out of the refrigerator when needed and reheated on the stove to 165 degrees, the inspection report said.

The manager told the county inspector no employees have been sick in the last month.

Chipotle said it has implemented measures in its restaurants such as deep cleaning, replacing ingredients, providing supply chain information to investigators and surveying employees for illness. No employees have come down with E. coli illness related to the outbreak, the company spokesperson said.

Stanislaus County health officials said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state Department of Public Health are responsible for investigating E. coli cases in the state.

This story was originally published November 24, 2015 at 10:20 AM with the headline "Adult who got E. coli was hospitalized."