Outbreak News
Shigella lawsuit filed against airline caterer
SEATTLE (May 19, 2005) – Marler Clark (www.marlerclark.com), the Seattle law firm internationally known for its representation of foodborne illness victims, filed a lawsuit Thursday on behalf of Ernie Lyon, a Florida man who fell ill after eating contaminated food while on a flight from Honolulu, Hawaii, to Minneapolis, Minnesota in August of 2004. The food that Mr. Lyon consumed was contaminated with Shigella bacteria, a dangerous foodborne pathogen that causes severe gastrointestinal illness. The lawsuit, which was filed in Hawaii circuit court against Gate Gourmet, Inc., a food and beverage company that services the airline industry, alleges that the defendant manufactured and sold contaminated food to several different airlines, causing a widespread Shigella outbreak in late-summer 2004.
Gate Gourmet, Inc.’s Honolulu, Hawaii facility recently came under fire from the Food and Drug Administration for numerous federal food safety violations, including pest and vermin problems. “What the FDA found during its investigation was Gate Gourmet’s egregious disregard for the health and safety of the people consuming the company’s food,” said William Marler, managing partner at Marler Clark. “We’re not talking about minor health code violations. We’re talking about investigators finding vermin, food stored at temperatures over fifty degrees higher than what is considered safe, and a ‘pink slimy substance’ in the washing machine. In the dozen years that I have been litigating these cases, this is one of the most shocking reports I have seen.” See http://www.fda.gov/foi/warning_letters/g5318d.htm.
Continue reading Shigella lawsuit filed against airline caterer on the Marler Clark website.
More on this outbreak: Gate Gourmet Shigella Outbreak
