Flathead restaurants linked to E. coli outbreak

Fourteen cases, including one death, were reported earlier this week by the Flathead City-County Health Department. It was first reported the suspected containment was ground beef, and an update on Friday said it was wagyu beef from one lot number. 

Multiple restaurants around the Flathead valley were associated with the outbreak: Gunsight Saloon, Hops Downtown Grill, Tamarack Brewing Company, the Lodge at Whitefish Lake and Harbor Grille.

“Furthermore, based on information provided through case investigation, one individual has died after exposure to wagyu beef consumed at Harbor Grille,” the news release stated.

All of the cases involved people eating uncooked or made-to-order burgers using wagyu beef. The last known date someone ate the meat was July 14. Patients associated with the outbreak had Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O157, which can be caused when someone eats raw or undercooked animal products contaminated with this strain of bacteria, the release stated. 

Several other businesses in the area, including Flathead Fish, the Crawdad Café and the Flathead Lake Lodge, received the contaminated meat from the same lot number, but no reported illnesses have been associated with these establishments, the news release stated.

The Missoulian previously reported the Flathead heath department first got an E. coli report on July 8. More cases trickled in in following days. 

“Once the source of exposure was preliminarily identified, public health staff worked directly with affected businesses to ensure all remaining wagyu beef from the contaminated lot was removed from use,” the news release stated.

Samples of the meat were sent to the Department of Public Health and Human Services where they were confirmed in a lab as the outbreak source. 

“All restaurants involved in this outbreak investigation have been incredibly cooperative,” said Jennifer Rankosky, Health Officer of the Flathead City-County Health Department. “They were willing to assist us in our investigative efforts and they all voluntarily removed the wagyu beef once we were able to identify it as the source of concern.”