A dozen people have recently been hospitalized after coming down with severe food poisoning symptoms according to the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC).
Health Department Officials say the victims all became ill after eating at a barbeque fundraiser. A hunting club sold the meal of barbeque pork, coleslaw, sweet potatoes and rolls at the Cedar Grove Baptist Church in Conway, South Carolina.
The South Carolina DHEC said that cultures taken from the hospitalized individuals revealed that Salmonella is the suspected food pathogen. The DHEC has advised that people who participated in making food for the event or purchased food from the fundraiser be aware of the possibility that they may have been exposed the Salmonella.
Salmonella can cause salmonellosis, a foodborne illness characterized by nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramping and diarrhea. All of these symptoms can be severe and cause dangerous and life threatening complications. Anyone who believes that they might have contracted salmonellosis should immediately seek medical attention.
Richard J. Arsenault, 2010
