AHS to answer questions on E. coli outbreak at Calgary daycares
CBC
Alberta Health Services will provide an update on the ongoing E. coli outbreak affecting a number of Calgary daycare centres.
Dr. Francesco Rizzuti, medical officer of health with AHS Calgary zone, will be taking questions from the media.
Watch the livestream here at 3 p.m.
Read our latest story below.
An official for six Calgary daycare centres closed due to an E. coli outbreak says a deep cleaning of the facilities could take up to a week.
Alberta Health Services said Tuesday there were 56 lab-confirmed cases linked to the outbreak including up to 50 children arriving at hospitals.
AHS said the number of people hospitalized has increased to 15, up from the 12 it had reported on Monday.
Six of the Fueling Brains daycare sites were issued a closure order until issues are resolved.
As well, AHS reported five additional sites that share a central kitchen are also part of the outbreak.
"All 11 daycare sites in the Calgary area have been issued a closure order until issues are resolved," AHS said in a statement.
"Families with children attending any of the above locations have been sent letters advising of the outbreak and are being asked to monitor for symptoms."
In a statement, Faisal Alimohd, the co-founder of Fueling Brains, said the organization was notified by AHS of the potential outbreak at around noon on Sunday, Sept. 3. Alimohd said that families were notified of the developing situation as soon as reliable information could be shared.
"The exact source of the outbreak has not been identified, but we will be reviewing our policies, procedures, and sourcing related to food services for our facilities," said Alimohd.
"We recognize that this is a difficult situation for our incredible families and staff. We will continue to work hard to support them and provide updates as they become available."