High school banquet leaves more than 20 sick with E. coli, several hospitalized

FENTON, Mo. ( KMOV /Gray News) – More than 20 high school students and parents in Missouri were sickened by E. coli following an end-of-season banquet, and several of them were hospitalized.

According to the St. Louis County Department of Public Health, the illnesses stem from an off-campus event involving students at Rockwood Summit High School near St. Louis.

The health department is investigating the E. coli outbreak and confirmed the school itself is not the source, though school officials are taking extra steps to deep clean the campus.

Michele Dubrouillet said her 16-year-old son, Nolan, started having diarrhea and cramping on Tuesday. She took him to the emergency room at Mercy Hospital St. Louis after he experienced an alarming change to the diarrhea.

"When it started to become blood, then I started to worry. And so I called the doctor this morning, and the doctor's advice was definitely take him to the ER," she said.

Dubrouillet said her son attended an end-of-season banquet with other students on Nov. 7. According to the Rockwood Summit High School band calendar , that was the evening the band's banquet was held.

"A lot of his friends are just not feeling well, and several of them have been hospitalized now," Dubrouillet said.

Officials haven't said exactly where the banquet was held or identified the source of the outbreak.

The health department said more than 20 students and parents were sickened, and that number is still rising.

Amanda Brzozowsky is the agency's senior epidemiologist and is leading the investigation to find the source.

"There are a couple of strains that make people sick, and this particular strain is one that can make people very sick," she said.

The Rockwood School District released the following statement on Thursday:

The health department said E. coli symptoms usually begin two to five days after exposure and can last five to 10 days. The most common E. coli infection symptoms include severe diarrhea (often bloody) and painful abdominal cramps.

Anyone who thinks they may have been infected by E. coli is urged to contact their doctor.