A salmonella outbreak linked to pork which has sickened 134 people in Washington, including 24 in Snohomish County, could be “just the tip of the iceberg,” state health officials said Wednesday.
So far, 15 people, including one person in Snohomish County, have been hospitalized, although no one has become seriously ill or died from the food-borne outbreak, said Dr. Scott Lindquist, the communicable disease epidemiologist for the state Department of Health.
The symptoms of people sickened by salmonella include severe, sometimes-bloody diarrhea, fever, chills and vomiting.
A team of investigators from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have come to Washington to assist in an investigation of slaughterhouses, restaurants, farms and barns to see if they can find the source of the outbreak, Lindquist said.
Pork, like any other meat or poultry product, is safe to eat if it is cooked to a temperature of 145 degrees, he said. Preparations include careful hand washing and not allowing pork juices to reach other surfaces where food is being prepared.
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