Lane County Public Health officials are investigating reports of a gastrointestinal disease outbreak after 14 people notified public health that they are experiencing severe vomiting, diarrhea, nausea and stomach cramps.
All 14 people exhibiting the symptoms attended the Faerieworld’s Festival in Veneta last weekend. Betsy Meredith, communicable disease and family planning nursing supervisor for Lane County Public Health said she is confident that the onset of the illness can be traced to the festival. Meredith said festival organizers are working closely with Public Health to determine the cause of the outbreak and to prevent further spreading.
“That’s the common denominator; they all had attended the festival,” Meredith said.
Meredith led a press conference on Wednesday afternoon to inform the public of the highly contagious disease. She stressed the importance of washing hands frequently to prevent spreading, and using a bleach solution to clean contaminated surfaces.
“Hand washing is a really, really important key to prevent the illness from spreading,” Meredith said.
Public Health officials have sent samples to the Oregon State Public Health Lab for testing to determine the source of the outbreak.
Meredith expects the test results to be in sometime later this week.