550 people report illness after P.E.I. shellfish festival, health officials say

More than 550 people who attended the P.E.I. International Shellfish Festival last weekend reported getting sick, according to the province’s Chief Public Health Office. 

The CPHO began its investigation earlier this week after people began reporting symptoms including nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach cramps and fever after the event, which was held Sept. 19-22 in Charlottetown. 

Stool samples taken from people who ate food at the festival have tested positive for norovirus, the public health office said in a news release Friday. 

“This is the biggest gastrointestinal illness outbreak we have on record,” Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Heather Morrison told CBC News on Friday.

Norovirus typically spreads through contaminated foods, such as raw shellfish or imported fruit, and is also highly transmissible in closed settings, including households, care homes, cruise ships and daycare facilities.

The illness caused four people to go to emergency departments, and one person to be hospitalized, the CPHO said. 

Organizers said 3,200 people attended the shellfish festival on Saturday alone.

Anyone with symptoms was advised to fill out an online food questionnaire in an effort to help track the extent of the outbreak and determine the cause.

The Chief Public Health Office also contacted the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and other health-care staff to remind them to take stool samples from anyone who presented with symptoms. 

Future guidance

As part of its investigation, the CPHO made six recommendations to lower the risk of gastrointestinal illness outbreaks at future events: 

1. Additional health inspections before and during the festival.

2. Enhanced sanitation of food preparation areas and common touch surfaces to prevent potential cross-contamination of foods.

3. Develop a policy to exclude staff and food handlers from working when ill and have a dedicated staff person to check daily with staff and food handlers about illnesses.

4. Have easily visible hand washing stations available at all washrooms and develop a policy to ensure they are checked and re-filled during the event.

5. Work with a sanitation company to ensure decontamination of common touch surfaces in the washrooms daily.

6. Maintain samples of prepared foods in cold storage for a minimum of 48 hours after the event has ended.

Shellfish festival organizers are “fully committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of all attendees and will continue to actively implement recommendations of the CPHO,” the health authority said.

More to come.