The German E.coli outbreak that has demanded the lives of 19 people so far, and hospitalized more than 1700, has all the elements of a cover-up. I am not saying that it is, but merely pointing out the obvious. Initially, German authorities acted “in conformity with the German laws” announcing Spain as the source of the deadly outbreak.
As the story progressed, Spain was cleared through laboratory tests, and Germany, once again, shifted the responsibility, this time to the whole European Union, that will pay damage to Spain’s farmers for their losses.
All media reports show Germany racing to track down the source of the pathogen, and somehow, after all the tests performed on organic cucumbers, tomatoes and lettuce, researchers are still unable to pinpoint the food source of the disease. Are they probably looking at the wrong foods? The E.coli outbreak, which has infected people in 12 countries, all of whom had been traveling in northern Germany, is said to be the deadliest in modern history. Incidentally, the outbreak is caused by a new strain, according to Chinese and German scientists working together with the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf. Many of those infected with this new E.coli strain have developed haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), a potentially deadly complication attacking the kidneys.
While still unable to pinpoint the source of the outbreak, Germans are looking for a scape-goat, and they apparently found one in a restaurant in Luebeck, where 17 of the thousands E.coli infected patients enjoyed a meal. For the small restaurant in Luebeck, such allegations can be a business killer. Moreover, none of the employees of the restaurant have been infected, and all are eating the same food they serve their customers. Last, but not least, most of the customers reported ill have had meals at other restaurants around Luebeck – there is no proof that any of these restaurants is a source. Health experts were also investigating whether the disease spread at a festival in Hamburg that was visited by 1.5 million people – a more probable source, by all logic.
While researchers are looking for E.coli on vegetables, the source could be a shipment of frozen meats from Mexico, or elsewhere. If – and this is just a theory – these got in touch with vegetables in storage, no wonder that researchers cannot pinpoint the food source: they are looking in the wrong places.
In the meanwhile, German hospitals in the north are struggling with patients. “The situation in the hospitals is intense,” minister Daniel Bahr told the Bild am Sonntag newspaper.
“All the hospitals in the region are pushing their limits,” said a spokesman for the Regio Clinics, the largest private hospital in the state of Schleswig-Holstein that surrounds Hamburg. “We can handle it but some of our patients have to be sent to other hospitals, especially those with HUS or needing dialysis.”
As the story progressed, Spain was cleared through laboratory tests, and Germany, once again, shifted the responsibility, this time to the whole European Union, that will pay damage to Spain’s farmers for their losses.
All media reports show Germany racing to track down the source of the pathogen, and somehow, after all the tests performed on organic cucumbers, tomatoes and lettuce, researchers are still unable to pinpoint the food source of the disease. Are they probably looking at the wrong foods? The E.coli outbreak, which has infected people in 12 countries, all of whom had been traveling in northern Germany, is said to be the deadliest in modern history. Incidentally, the outbreak is caused by a new strain, according to Chinese and German scientists working together with the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf. Many of those infected with this new E.coli strain have developed haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), a potentially deadly complication attacking the kidneys.
While still unable to pinpoint the source of the outbreak, Germans are looking for a scape-goat, and they apparently found one in a restaurant in Luebeck, where 17 of the thousands E.coli infected patients enjoyed a meal. For the small restaurant in Luebeck, such allegations can be a business killer. Moreover, none of the employees of the restaurant have been infected, and all are eating the same food they serve their customers. Last, but not least, most of the customers reported ill have had meals at other restaurants around Luebeck – there is no proof that any of these restaurants is a source. Health experts were also investigating whether the disease spread at a festival in Hamburg that was visited by 1.5 million people – a more probable source, by all logic.
While researchers are looking for E.coli on vegetables, the source could be a shipment of frozen meats from Mexico, or elsewhere. If – and this is just a theory – these got in touch with vegetables in storage, no wonder that researchers cannot pinpoint the food source: they are looking in the wrong places.
In the meanwhile, German hospitals in the north are struggling with patients. “The situation in the hospitals is intense,” minister Daniel Bahr told the Bild am Sonntag newspaper.
“All the hospitals in the region are pushing their limits,” said a spokesman for the Regio Clinics, the largest private hospital in the state of Schleswig-Holstein that surrounds Hamburg. “We can handle it but some of our patients have to be sent to other hospitals, especially those with HUS or needing dialysis.”
An infected patient lies in his bed in an isolation area of a Hamburg hospital Thursday. Photograph by: Fabian Bimmer, Reuters.
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