Kansas authorities reported two deaths among the eight known cases of listeriosis in the state so far. Five of those eight have been confirmed as linked to the national outbreak.
“We are waiting on the medical examiner to say the cause of death,” said Barbara Hersh, public information officer for the Kansas State Department of Health and Environment in Topeka. The two who died are among the eight who’ve tested positive for listeriosis, “but we don’t know if that was their primary cause of death. And we don’t know if the two who died were part of the five who CDC confirmed were part of the national outbreak yet.”
The outbreak is linked to whole cantaloupes sold by Jensen Farms of Holly, Colo. They may have been labeled Sweet Rocky Fords, but some may have been unlabeled.
Melons were sold in 25 states; cases have been found in California, Colorado, Kansas, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyomng.