An elderly Missouri couple has filed the first lawsuit related to the latest outbreak of listeria linked to deli pork butt that sickened nearly three dozen people and caused two deaths.
Patrick and Sue Fleming are seeking more than $25,000 in personal injury and damages from Boar’s Head and Schnucks Markets for medical expenses, “loss of enjoyment of life” and “damage to the marital relationship,” according to the complaint filed in St. Louis County District Court. .
“Plaintiff Patrick Fleming has lost the love, services, consortium, comfort, direction, guidance, counsel and support of his wife which he would have received in the ordinary course of his married life,” the lawsuit states.
After eating Boar’s Head liver that Patrick, 76, bought at Schnucks Markets in Ballwin, Mo., in June, Sue, 88, became “deathly ill,” according to the complaint.
She reported experiencing “nausea, diarrhea, stomach cramps, and, most disturbingly, severe pain throughout the body, tremors, and muscle weakness.”
Sue received “intensive care” at a nearby hospital, where she remained “severely ill and hospitalized for nine days,” according to the complaint.
After her release, she was transferred to a rehabilitation center, where she “attempted to regain her pre-infection base” for 11 days.
The eight-year-old claims she still suffers “from the effects of her infection, including a range of neurological symptoms, fatigue and general weakness”.
The Flemings are suing Boar’s Head and Schnucks for manufacturing defect and negligence, among other causes of action.
On Friday, Hog’s Head recalled 207,528 pounds of liver meat and other foods produced between June 11 and July 17.
Stop & Shop said it was temporarily closing all of its grocery stores.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said 34 people in 13 states have been sickened by the latest listeria outbreak. Thirty-three of them were hospitalized and two died of their infections. Twelve of the victims were in New York.
Most people recover after three days and rarely become seriously ill, but of the 1,600 annual cases, about 260 people die each year, according to the CDC.
People who are most at risk of serious infection include those who are pregnant, who may miscarry; newborns; adults age 65 and older; and people with weakened immune systems.
The Boar’s Head and Schnucks did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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