AMU Emergency Management Public Safety

EDM Wednesday Briefing: 19 New Reported Cases of E. coli Linked to Tainted Ground Beef

By
e coli beef Arsenault

Emergency and disaster management briefing for May 15, 2019: The CDC has reported 19 new cases of E. coli linked to contaminated ground beef; Kokopo, Papua New Guinea, was struck with a magnitude 7.5 earthquake that produced a small tsunami on Tuesday; a Qantas flight diverted midway through its six-hour flight due to an electrical fault; a mid-air collision between two sightseeing float planes in Alaska has killed six people and wounded 10 others; a shooting at a home in St. Louis left three dead and two wounded; another 75 cases of the measles have been reported as case numbers approach the 1994 outbreak total; a small seaplane made an emergency landing on the Hudson River in Rockland County, New York; and the State Department has ordered all non-emergency personnel at the U.S. Embassy and consulate in Iraq to leave the country amid rising tensions with Iran.

1) New information released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that 19 new cases of E. coli linked to tainted ground beef have been reported since last month. Two companies — Grant Park Packing and Colorado Premium Foods — have issued recalls for ground beef products, but according to officials, meat tainted with E. coli could still be in stores. A total of 10 states have a reported 196 cases of E. coli, with Georgia and Kentucky having the highest number of people sickened, at 49 and 69, respectively. Of the total reported cases, 28 people have required hospitalization.

2) Coastal towns in Papua New Guinea were struck by a strong, magnitude 7.5 earthquake Tuesday evening around 11:00 p.m, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Disaster coordinators from the nation’s National Disaster Centre were assessing damages late Tuesday into Wednesday, after the quake rattled the coastal town of Kokopo, which houses approximately 26,000 residents. The quake, which cut power and shook items from shelves, was centered offshore about 28 miles north of Kokopo, at a depth of 6.2 miles, and also generated a small tsunami.

3) A Qantas flight landed safely in Broome after pilots diverted the aircraft due to a declared emergency from a reported electrical fault. Flight QF44, bound for Sydney, Australia, departed Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport at around 10:40 p.m. Monday night, but experienced the reported electrical issue about halfway through the six-hour flight. The fault prompted the pilots to request the diversion and a priority landing into Broome, Australia. After the aircraft landed safely, the airline worked to re-accommodate the passengers on other flights to their final destinations.

4) A mid-air collision between two aerial sightseeing float planes near Ketchikan, Alaska, on Monday has left six people dead and 10 others injured. The collision involved two De Havilland aircraft types, a DHC-2 Beaver, and a DHC-3 Otter, which were carrying passengers on sightseeing tours from the cruise ship, the Royal Princess. The pilot and all four passengers on the DHC-2 Beaver were killed, while one passenger was killed on the DHC-3 Otter and 10 others were injured. Alaska State Troopers have identified the six individuals killed in the mid-air collision. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), along with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), have launched an investigation into the mid-air crash.

5) Three people are dead and two wounded, one critically, after being shot at a home in the north St. Louis, Missouri neighborhood of Penrose on Monday night. Police responded to a call just before 9:00 p.m., and found one victim on the porch and four more inside the home. One of the victims found alive had sustained a gunshot wound to his head and was reportedly in critical condition, while the other victim had a gunshot wound to his leg and was in serious but stable condition. According to reports, the three victims who were killed were all related. The male with the gunshot wound to the head is reportedly brain-dead and on life support.

6) The measles outbreak across the nation continues to grow, with a reported 75 new cases — mostly in the State of New York. A total of 839 cases have been reported across the country, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported a 9.8 percent increase in measles cases as of May 10 — the worst outbreak the nation has seen since 1994. A total of 41 cases have been reported in New York City, with an additional 25 cases being reported in Rockland County, about 40 miles north of the city, bringing the total number of cases in New York to 66.

7) A small seaplane made an emergency landing in the Hudson River on Tuesday evening in Piermont, Rockland County, New York. The pilot was the only person on board the small plane, and he decided to make the sudden landing after weather conditions rapidly deteriorated. Once the plane landed, the pilot was unable to restart the engines and required assistance from first responders to tow the plane to shore.

8) Amid rising tensions between Iran and the United States, the U.S. State Department has ordered all non-emergency personnel at the U.S. Embassy and consulate in Iraq to leave the country. The order follows last week’s advisory from the embassy to avoid all travel to the region after “credible threats” from Iran against Americans were detected. The order also follows a suggestion from U.S. military officials that the recent attacks that damaged four ships — two from Saudi Arabia — off the coast of United Arab Emirates (UAE) resulted from “Iran or its proxies.” According to Saudi Arabian officials, that has increased maritime security concerns — both regionally and internationally — and threatened oil supplies globally.

 

Kimberly Arsenault serves as an intern at the Cleveland/Bradley County Emergency Management Agency where she works on plan revisions and special projects. Previously, Kimberly spent 15 years in commercial and business aviation. Her positions included station manager at the former Midwest Express Airlines, as well as corporate flight attendant, inflight manager, and charter flight coordinator. Kimberly currently holds a master's degree in emergency and disaster management from American Public University.

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