At least 64 children and 42 adults have fallen ill in an E. coli O157:H7 outbreak connected to North Carolina’s Cleveland County Fair. That number includes 2 year-old Gage Lefevers, who died last Friday as a direct result of his infection.
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services said that given the amount of time that has passed since the outbreak, it does not expect any more direct-exposure illnesses to be reported, though more person-to-person infections may surface.
An investigation into the cause of the outbreak continues. The fair included a petting zoo, which have become notorious for causing outbreaks of pathogenic bacteria.
