State officials trace

E. coli to Chatham

By Cara Rotondaro

After state health officials reported a Chatham County petting zoo as the main culprit in an E. coli outbreak that affected 108 people after the state fair this fall, three families of children who got sick have filed a lawsuit.

The families contend in their suit that the Crossroads Farm Petting Zoo, owned by Jason Wilkie and located in Bear Creek, failed to provide adequate protection against infection.

The lawsuit was filed in Wake County Superior Court.

State health officials linked the outbreak to the state fair in early November, and went on to look for a specific source of contamination.

Investigators found E. coli present in at least three exhibits at the state fair this year, but said that the bacteria was most prevalent at the Crossroads Farm site.

According to a press release from the NC Department of Health and Human Services, 43 of the likely 108 cases of E. coli were confirmed by lab tests and 33 of those cases were identical when submitted to genetic testing and matched positive E. coli samples taken from the Crossroads Farm Petting Zoo.

“This controlled study design is the gold standard for this kind of investigation,” said State Epidemiologist Dr. Jeffrey Engel.

The study also contended that direct contact with manure was most likely to result in infection.

Children who were sucking their thumbs, pacifiers, or drinking from a sippy-cup while visiting the petting zoo were more likely to become infected, as well, according to the study.  

more- See Thursday, December 23 paper: Vol 85, No.4

Siler City Post Office given OK on ramp

By Melissa Ledgerwood

The hard work and effort several Siler City residents have put into acquiring a handicapped ramp at the Siler City Post Office has paid off.

After careful inspection of the building, the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources has granted its blessing regarding the addition of a handicapped ramp at the front entrance.

“It’s in the system as a capital project,” said Siler City acting postmaster R. Stephen Bennett in an interview Monday.  “We’ve taken the very first big step.”

The Post Office, which was built in 1939-1940, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Originally, Siler City residents, who petitioned for a ramp, were told by post office officials that adding a ramp was not an option because it would disturb the physical appearance of the historical building.

However state historic preservation officer Jeffrey Crow said his office has worked with this “challenging issue many times when dealing with historic public buildings.”

more- See Thursday, December 23 paper: Vol 85, No.4

Remains discovered in creek 

By Melissa Ledgerwood

An autopsy confirmed that human remains found in a Siler City creek Sunday are that of 73-year-old J.D. Fikes, who was reported missing August 30.

The Siler City Police Department received a call approximately 2:45 p.m. Sunday, informing officials of human remains in a creek just south of East Eleventh Street.

The creek is located between Love’s Creek Mobile Home Park and the area of Bojangle’s, Hart Furniture Warehouses and Southern Showcase.

Fikes’ body was located about a quarter of a mile from Love’s Creek Mobile Home Park.

Due to the location of the body, police suspected the remains might be Fikes’, who had been staying with family in the mobile home park at 1005 North Hampton Street at the time of his disappearance.

No identification was found on the body, according to Major Bill Harman of the Siler City Police Department.

Detective C.H. Johnson, Jr. worked with the UNC Hospitals’ medical examiner’s office in Chapel Hill to obtain Fikes’ medical records.

Fikes was reported missing by his daughter, Rayetta Fikes Fox.

The autopsy was performed December 21.

more- See Thursday, December 23 paper: Vol 85, No.4