An ongoing investigation by the Broome County Health Department has revealed multiple violations by the Broome County jail’s food vendor that may have resulted in a salmonella outbreak infecting over 300 inmates.
The Broome County Sheriff’s Office provided updates on the salmonella outbreak within the jail on June 4. An investigation into the cause of the gastrointestinal illness that left hundreds of inmates sick and multiple inmates hospitalized is ongoing.
After reviewing footage from the jail and speaking to members of the kitchen staff, which is a combination of working inmates and employees provided by food vendor Trinity Food Groups, Broome County Health Department Director Olivia Catalano said the health department found six critical violations during the preparation of the chicken salad served to inmates.
What happened
The stomach bug-like illness, which infected 320 of the 450 people being held in the jail, was first thought to be norovirus, but test results later revealed the infection spreading within the facility was salmonella, a foodborne bacterial infection.
Ten people were sent to the hospital for treatment, and four were admitted. The four people had “underlying risk factors” and were listed as stable on May 29, according to Broome County Sheriff Fred Akshar. As of June 4, there are two people remaining in the hospital and Broome County Health Department Medical Director Lazarus Gehring said he expected them to be released on June 5.
As a part of the health department’s initial crisis response, food from the prison was sent to the Wadsworth Center lab in Albany for testing to find the source of the bacteria, and test results for chicken salad that was served to the inmates came back positive for salmonella. On June 4, Broome County Health Department Public Health Director Olivia Catalano confirmed that no other food sent to Albany tested positive for salmonella.
In their initial response, the health department was able to interview the majority of the inmates suffering with salmonella symptoms to help determine the source of the infection. The investigation is ongoing and stool samples given by 20 inmates are currently being compared to the chicken salad strain of salmonella to determine if it is a match.
The health department investigation
After the outbreak began, Catalano said the health department immediately began an investigation to determine where the salmonella originated from.
The health department found multiple violations with the food preparation and storage practices within the facility, according to Catalano. In a review of security footage taken in the jail’s kitchen, the health department observed “numerous instances” in which “potentially hazardous food” was improperly refrigerated. Health department staff noted milk that remained on the jail’s loading dock for more than two hours, refrigerated and frozen foods left on the loading dock for more than five hours and frozen chicken left in the kitchen for more than three hours, which was then placed into a large skillet for cooking.
Over the next several hours, the chicken was attended to by the food staff. The food staff attempted to break apart the frozen chicken while it was cooking, and the internal temperature of the meat was never checked. This, Catalano said, is a critical violation and chicken must be cooked to 165 degrees internally in order to kill bacteria like salmonella.
The temperature of the chicken was not checked during cooking, cooling, reheating or storing. Instead, after the chicken was done, it was placed into a large container approximately 18 inches deep, 14 inches deeper than what is permissible, and taken directly into the walk-in freezer, which could cause bacterial growth from improper cooling. Food staff also handled the cooked chicken with bare hands, according to Catalano.
After the chicken sat in the freezer overnight, a member of the kitchen staff was observed mixing the chicken salad with bare hands in a container “so deep that the worker’s arms were submerged up to his elbows,” according to Catalano. The worker did not wear gloves or wash his hands.
Kitchen staff were also observed failing to wash their hands after handling raw chicken and eating in the kitchen. Minor violations included poor hygiene and improper practices like workers not wearing hair nets, workers eating in the food areas and improper sanitizing of equipment and utensils. Kitchen surfaces were not washed, sanitized or even rinsed after use following potential contamination.
Catalano said a buffalo chopper used to cut raw chicken was not washed before being used to cut celery. After the worker was done using the equipment, he rinsed it with water and did not properly sanitize it before putting it back together for further use.
The six critical violations observed during this meal prep must be “corrected immediately” and may result in the closure or “pose an imminent risk to public health” if not taken care of. The minor violations may be corrected within a timeframe determined by the health department. Kitchen staff will also be retrained, according to Catalano.
Akshar responds to criticism
In light of the health department’s investigation, Akshar said the actions of the food vendor are “wholly unacceptable” and do not align with his expectations as sheriff. The position the jail and the inmates are in today, he said, is because of the failure of the vendor.
“We are having ongoing conversations with the legal department about how we will hold the food vendor accountable for the issue at hand, and then how I move forward to ensure this never happens again,” he said.
In the future, Akshar said it is possible the jail will “go in a different direction” and switch food vendors.
“There are some mistakes that are unforgivable, this being one of them,” he said.
The salmonella outbreak prompted a class action lawsuit which was filed on May 29 against Akshar and Broome County alleging the inmates suffered salmonella poisoning as a result of negligence and breach of duties.
The exposure to the infection, according to the claim, was due to Akshar’s “failure” to prevent improper purchase, preservation, cooking and delivery of food free from salmonella-causing bacteria. It also alleges that Akshar, through his employees, breached his duties under New York State Corrections Law which requires the “health, welfare and safety of inmates.”
Former inmates and relatives of current inmates also made allegations regarding Akshar’s involvement during a press conference held by attorney Ron Benjamin on June 3. The accusations included a lack of transparency with inmates during the outbreak and after their release, a lack of medical attention, unclean conditions and little access to clean drinking water.
Akshar addressed these claims on June 4, calling them “frivolous” and “untrue.” While showing jail security footage which showed jail and medical staff wheeling in pallets of water, Akshar said inmates always have access to “clean, healthy” water and 13,000 bottles of water were passed out over the past 11 days. In addition to the 13,000 bottles of water, over 10,000 packets of Liquid IV electrolyte packs were handed out by the jail and medical staff.
Akshar said the claim that some inmates were not seen by medical professionals is “completely untrue.” Medical staff went to “every single gate” and “personally interacted with every single inmate in the facility” during the initial outbreak period and for the remainder of the 11-day period.
Former inmates also alleged that the facility was not properly cleaned following the outbreak and that laundry services halted, leaving many with dirty clothes and sheets. Akshar said the jail’s laundry supervisor worked double shifts to ensure inmates had access to clean clothing.
Latoya Warren, the mother of an inmate who fell ill on May 25, said she requested he be taken to the emergency room for the severity of his symptoms. After reaching out to Broome County Legislator Mary Kaminski, who got in contact with the sheriff, she said he was not taken into the hospital. In response, Akshar said he personally called and ensured that her son was seen by medical staff.
The health department investigation into the outbreak is ongoing. More information regarding the chicken salad and the collected sample comparison is expected to be released next week.
This article originally appeared on Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin: Broome County jail faults food vendor after salmonella outbreak
Reporting by Jillian McCarthy, Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin / Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Jillian McCarthy, Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin | USA TODAY Network
