Three people in Washington state are dead after eating milkshakes sold at a family-owned burger restaurant recently tied to a listeria outbreak, state health officials shared.
The Washington State Department of Health released a report last week confirming the listeria bacteria were found in all milkshake flavors sold at Frugals Burger in Tacoma, Washington.
“Investigators found Listeria in the ice cream machines, which were not cleaned correctly,” the department said. “No other Frugals restaurants are believed to be affected.”
The bacteria led to the hospitalization of six people and three deaths. Those who were hospitalized were aged 40 to 79, the department shared.
On Aug. 8, after being made aware of the listeria in the ice cream machine, the restaurant stopped using them, but the department shared that listeria can continue to afflict people for up to 70 days.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a listeria infection occurs after eating food contaminated with the bacterium. Symptoms commonly seen in an infection include muscle aches, fatigue, stiff neck, fever, headache, loss of balance, confusion, seizures, diarrhea, and vomiting.
Those who are pregnant, older than 65, or have weakened immune systems, are showing symptoms, and have had a milkshake at the Frugals in Tacoma between May 29 and Aug. 7 are encouraged to see their healthcare provider, according to the health department.
The strain of listeria was detected in all six people who were hospitalized between Feb. 27 and July 22, the department said.
“All six people had conditions that made their immune systems less able to fight disease,” the department reported.
The Tacoma restaurant has commented on the situation, sharing a statement on its social media pages.
“Last week, Frugals was notified by the Pierce County Health Department (PCHD) of an investigation into a possible listeria outbreak at our Tacoma Frugals locations. Since that time, we have been working with PCHD to identify and contain the source of listeria after a test on a milkshake machine in our Tacoma store tested positive for the bacteria,” the statement said.
The statement went on to say the restaurant was “deeply saddened” by the news of those who were hospitalized and those who died.
“We are heartbroken and deeply regret any harm our actions could have caused,” the statement said.
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