Public HealthSunday, November 8
Brookshire Farms reopens after 10 days as the county says its E. coli outbreak poses no ongoing threat
The Daily San Luis Obispo team
If you visited Brookshire Farms this fall, here's where things stand. The pumpkin patch and corn maze on Los Osos Valley Road reopened Friday after 10 days closed, and county Public Health said Friday there's no ongoing public health threat.
Five people had lab-confirmed E. coli O157, and all five visited on Oct. 17 or 18. ABC News reported they're two adults and three children. If you went between Oct. 16 and 26 and have symptoms, Public Health asks you to contact a health care provider.
The outbreak ran from a mid-October visit to a Nov. 6 reopening
- Oct. 17Callaway says one group went through the night maze around 7 p.m.
- Oct. 18Callaway says a second group visited the farm that morning.
- Oct. 27The county reports five cases and Brookshire Farms closes voluntarily.
- Nov. 6Brookshire Farms reopens to the public after 10 days closed.
- Exposure window: Oct. 16 through 26
- Symptoms: cramping, bloody diarrhea; usually start three to five days after exposure
- Children under 10 face the highest risk of complications
The source is still unknown. Genetic testing matched strains from three patients; a fourth is pending and a fifth couldn't be run. KSBY spoke with health officer Dr. Christy Mulkerin, who said the infection can cause kidney failure in young children. Co-owner Shawn Callaway told The Tribune, “I’m destroyed.”
Five people got sick and the farm closed for 10 days
- 5
- lab-confirmed E. coli O157 cases
- 3
- children among the five cases
- 10 days
- the farm was closed