The North Dakota Health Department is investigating a case of listeria illness linked to Colorado cantaloupes, the director of disease control said Tuesday night.

The case involves an older woman in the central part of the state, Director Kirby Kruger said. He did not identify her, but said she was hospitalized. He did not have information on her condition.

“She did have a history of consuming cantaloupe,” Kruger said. “We’re still involved in the investigation, trying to determine where she got the cantaloupe.

“Listeriosis can have a long incubation period – up to 60 days. You try to remember what you ate over that long of a period,” Kruger said.

The lab evidence so far indicates a “good probability” of a link to the woman’s illness and the Colorado cantaloupes, he said.