ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, April 2, 1997 TAG: 9704020033
SECTION: NATL/ITNL PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: LOS ANGELES
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
CDC says gamma globulin should prevent disease in anyone who's eaten the fruit in the last 14 days.
Strawberries that may be tainted with the hepatitis A virus were sent to 17 states, and as many as 9,000 youngsters and adults in Los Angeles may have been exposed to the virus.
In Michigan, where the only illnesses have appeared so far, nearly 200 suspected cases of hepatitis A have been linked to the strawberries.
Four-ounce fruit cups served last week in 18 Los Angeles public schools may have been contaminated with the hepatitis virus, school officials said Tuesday. There have been no reports of illness in Los Angeles, but health officials plan to set up immunization centers to help avert an outbreak.
``It's not a panic situation,'' said Shirley Fannin, the county's director of infectious disease control, noting that there is a 14-day incubation period.``We're here within a week of consumption. We have another week to plan.''
Tom Amontree, communications director for the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington, said possibly tainted strawberries were sent to 17 states. He said the states were asked to ``put a hold'' on the berries.
He could not provide a list of the states. The USDA distributed the berries as surplus food.
California officials said the strawberries were also sent to schools in Michigan, Arizona, Georgia and Tennessee. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sent letters to those states, along with California and Florida, to check to see if they served the berries.
Iowa officials warned that about 300 of that state's schools may have served the strawberries as recently as last week.
Bob Howard, a spokesman for the National Center for Infectious Diseases, confirmed an ongoing investigation into the Michigan outbreak, which has ``strongly implicated'' a single batch of strawberries.
The CDC said gamma globulin should prevent the disease in anyone who has eaten the fruit in the last 14 days.
LENGTH: Short : 47 linesby CNB