Six More Claim E. Coli Ailments

News reports about 11 cases of E. coli bacteria infection linked to a Chili’s restaurant in Boise have prompted six more people to step forward with symptoms.

The suspected new E. coli cases raise questions about health officials’ failure to notify the public about the potentially deadly outbreak.

Last week, health officials defended their decision by saying the outbreak was limited to the 11 cases they knew of at the time.

On Tuesday, Kathy Holley, director of the Central District Health Department, emphasized that none of the six suspected cases was confirmed yet.

A Chili’s official said the company was working with the Central District Health Department to find the source of the contamination.

So far, 11 people, mostly young adults, have confirmed E. coli infections after eating at the Chili’s on Broadway Avenue.

Health officials believe the danger has passed. All 11 confirmed cases, as well as the six suspected cases, involved people who ate at the restaurant between Sept. 14 and Sept. 22.

Within days, all suffered bloody diarrhea and violent intestinal cramps - the hallmark symptoms of infection with E. coli 0157:H7, the strain of bacteria that sickened hundreds of Jack In The Box restaurant customers and killed three children in 1993.

The Health Department remains uncertain of the exact source of the infections.

All 11 confirmed cases were in diners who ate chicken or Caesar’s salad at Chili’s. However, recent tests of those foods, as well as countertops and other surfaces in the restaurant kitchen, turned up no signs of E. coli.