Norovirus 101

January 3, 2020.Reading time 8 minutes.

If you’ve been following local news in recent weeks, you may have seen stories about outbreaks of norovirus – a highly contagious virus that causes rapid onset of vomiting and diarrhea. Norovirus is the most common cause of acute, or short-term, gastroenteritis (inflammation of the stomach and intestines) in the country and is responsible for […]

Multiple cases of E. coli potentially associated with King County Evergreens restaurants

November 26, 2019.Reading time 9 minutes.

Update (December 16, 2019): We’ve identified additional cases in the E. coli outbreak potentially linked to meals at King County Evergreens restaurants during November 5-11, 2019. This outbreak appears to be over. For more information, view the foodborne illness disclosure for this outbreak. Update (December 6, 2019): We’ve identified additional cases linked to this outbreak. […]

Local E. coli cases connected to national outbreak

November 22, 2019.Reading time 5 minutes.

Update 12/24/19: Two additional King County residents have tested positive for E. coli infections genetically linked to the national outbreak connected to romaine lettuce from the Salinas, California growing region. Both infection were in adults, and both people became ill on December 1, 2019. As a reminder, consumers are directed to avoid all romaine lettuce from the Salinas, […]

Deathcap Mushroom Season is here: Mushroom foragers should take extreme care

October 31, 2019.Reading time 4 minutes.

Watch out, mushroom foragers. Fall rains bring blooms of Amanita phalloides, better known as the death cap mushroom. They are common in Western Washington, and were found recently on the University of Washington Seattle campus. The death cap mushroom has no distinctive odor or taste and resembles other nontoxic varieties. Consumption of the Amanita […]

WASHING CHICKEN SPREADS GERMS

September 30, 2019.Reading time 9 minutes.

September is National Food Safety Education Month! To celebrate, we sat down with Dr. Eyob Mazengia, who specializes in food safety here at Public Health. We discussed a topic Eyob’s an expert in (he wrote his PhD dissertation on it!) – how to safely handle raw chicken in the home kitchen. Q: Let’s start with […]

Quartermaster Harbor beaches closed for shellfish harvesting

August 29, 2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

Paralytic Shellfish Poison (PSP) has been detected at unsafe levels in Quartermaster Harbor shellfish on Vashon-Maury Island. As a result, the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) has closed Quartermaster Harbor beaches to recreational shellfish harvest. The closure includes all species of shellfish including clams, geoduck, scallops, mussels, oysters, snails and other invertebrates; the closure […]