Food poisoning caused by veggie burger
Karen Morrisroe-Clutton was one of four customers who became seriously ill after eating food from a fish and chip shop in July this year.
Mrs Morrisroe-Clutton, 32, a librarian and mother, was left fighting for her life after eating a veggie burger from the Llay fish bar and ended up in a coma at Wrexham Maelor hospital. Her mother, Rose Morrisroe, said “she started with stomach trouble, then developed sickness and was passing blood. The doctor became worried and sent for tests, after which she was admitted to intensive care. She’s been in a medically-induced coma since then and is on kidney dialysis and a plasma exchange machine. Things are improving slightly but she’s not out of danger yet.”
Three-year-old Abigail Hennessey also suffered a life-threatening bout of food poisoning after eating food from the Llay fish bar. She was transmitted to the specialist Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool and is being treated for renal failure. Her parents Jeffrey, 38, and Sarah have kept a bedside vigil throughout this ordeal.
Two other customers were said to be seriously ill after contracting food poisoning from the fish and chip shop which is now closed.
The fish and chip shop in question is the Llay fish bar in Wrexham, North Wales. When it was inspected a year earlier it was given zero out of a possible five stars and given one year to improve and make the necessary changes. The report cited “poor hygiene conditions” and “some major non-compliance with food legislation”. The inspection found that there was no soap at hand basins, nothing except a tea towel to dry hands on and hardly any cleaning materials present.
The fish bar was due for re-inspection just days after four customers fell ill from the outbreak of E.coli. There has now been an emergency inspection, which revealed flies on pizza toppings and a lack of soap and cleaning materials. The council obtained a court order for the shop to remain closed and an emergency hygiene prohibition notice was served on 31st July. Pierre Bartlett, the solicitor for the shop owner Ramazan Aslan said his client was cooperating with the investigation.
Residents condemned the hygiene standards of the fish shop and said that there had been other food scares since last year’s inspection. Neil Stephens, 44, a former customer claimed that he suffered from food poisoning contracted from a chicken kebab which he bought from the shop last July. He said “within twenty-four hours I was hit by diarrhoea, severe stomach cramps and agonising cramps almost as if I was having a heart attack.” He called NHS Direct and an ambulance came out. Neil was treated in hospital before later being discharged. He added that “it took [him] three weeks to recover fully and [he] lost two stone in weight.”
E.coli is short for Escherichia coli, of which many strains are harmless. However E.coli0157 can cause a life threatening condition known as haemolytic uraemic syndrome which leads to renal failure and the destruction of red blood cells. It multiplies in the gut and releases toxins that damage the lining of the intestine. Antibiotics have no effect and diarrhoea medicines are counterproductive as they prevent the body from ejecting the bug.
Dr Judy Hart, a consultant in communicable disease control at the National Public Health Service for Wales, said that symptoms can range from mild diarrhoea, stomach cramps and fever to bloody diarrhoea. She added that “most people recover without complications, but the most severe cases can develop kidney failure. The infection can also pass from person to person and so it is important that anyone who is ill should observe strict personal hygiene to avoid spreading the infection.” E.coli can also be caught from eating contaminated food, through contact with farm animals or through contact with contaminated water.