California Romaine Lettuce E. coli Outbreak - Washington State
Thurston and Pierce counties of Washington State experienced an E. coli outbreak in May of 2008. Ten people were infected with E. coli O157:H7; all had recently eaten salads in local restaurants. The outbreak was traced to commercial, bagged romaine lettuce from the Salinas Valley, CA. The Salinas Valley was the epicenter of a nationwide E. coli spinach outbreak in 2006.
On August 20, 2008 Marler Clark filed an E. coli lawsuit on behalf of a student at Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) in Parkland, Washington, who became seriously ill after taking all of her meals on campus. Marler Clark also represents a victim who developed HUS, or hemolytic uremic syndrome, as a result of consuming contaminated lettuce.