Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, Dr. Mark Joffe, has revealed that inspectors discovered three critical violations at a central kitchen serving Calgary daycares affected by a recent E. coli outbreak. The violations, related to food handling, sanitation, and pest control, were identified during an inspection conducted on September 5th. Additionally, two non-critical violations were noted, concerning an odor issue and utensil storage.
Since the outbreak was declared on September 4th at 11 daycares, there have been over 231 lab-confirmed cases of E. coli infection, making it an unprecedented and severe outbreak in Alberta. Dr. Joffe emphasized that the outbreak’s scale and severity are particularly concerning because it primarily affects young children, who are at the highest risk of severe health complications.
Dr. Joffe pointed to the central kitchen as the likely source of the infections, and he commended the swift decision to close it immediately on September 4th, which likely prevented the outbreak from becoming even more extensive.
Currently, Alberta Health Services is conducting tests on eleven food samples from the central kitchen and eight from daycare sites in its public health lab. As of the latest update, twenty-five children and one adult were receiving medical care in hospitals, with twenty-one of them in a severely ill condition.
The outbreak underscores the critical importance of maintaining stringent food safety and hygiene standards, especially in facilities catering to vulnerable populations such as children. Authorities will continue to investigate the source of the contamination and take necessary actions to prevent future outbreaks and ensure the safety of daycare facilities and their young occupants.
