Four cases of E. coli O157:H7 in the Wichita, KS, area stem from contamination at a private event and are not related to last Monday’s Wolverine Packing Co. recall of about 1.8 million pounds of pathogen-tainted beef. Those infected at the private event, about which no details were released, include two people from Sedgwick County and two from Harvey County. One of the four has seen the infection progress to hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a serious complication in E. coli cases involving possible kidney failure and which usually strikes children. Kansas Department of Health and Environment spokeswoman Aimee Rosenow said state officials are investigating three other E. coli cases that appear to be unrelated to the four cases from the private event. Two of those other three were from Cowley County, where one person had both E. coli and HUS, while the other was solely an HUS case. The third case is from Nemaha County, where the individual was treated for both E. coli and HUS. It also unlikely that any of those three are connected to the recalled beef. Meanwhile, 20-year old Crystal Skram of Kansas City, MO, who got sick April 22 on vacation in Texas and where she was treated for both E. coli and HUS, was reportedly wondering if the source of her infection was the recalled beef. Skram spent 20 days in a Texas hospital before returning to Missouri. She went through having her kidneys shut down, fluid retention, and dialysis. Because Skram was hospitalized in Texas, Missouri health officials say they were not aware of her case until she did some media interviews after returning home.