
AKWESASNE, Ont. – The Mohawk Council of Akwesasne’s Department of Health is dealing with an outbreak of salmonella.
The MCA said in a statement Friday afternoon there are two confirmed cases of the food poisoning and its investigating others who are symptomatic with possible salmonella.
The health department has contacted up to 50 people in the community. Eleven of those have been told to seek medical help and to get lab tests done.
Twenty-four community members have also been identified in the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe jurisdiction and the information has been forwarded to the New York tribal health unit to follow up.
The symptoms of salmonella include diarrhea, fever, chills, headache or vomiting and if you experience them you’re urged to call the community health nurse at 613-575-2341 extension 3220.
Symptoms usually show up 6-72 hours after exposure though the band did not say what people had been exposed to.
The department of health calling scores of community members would suggest the infected or possibly infected were part of a large gathering or function which had kept a list of attendees.
The MCA department of health is also sharing information with Eastern Ontario Health Unit Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Paul Roumeliotis.
In an email to Cornwall Newswatch, Dr. Roumeliotis said they are working with the MCA Department of Health which “is looking for a common source of the outbreak.”
A spokeswoman for MCA was hoping to fill a request for more information on the outbreak Monday.
Salmonella is spread through raw or undercooked eggs, poultry or meat and, in some rare cases, vegetables. It’s also spread through the improper handling of those foods, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
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