Almost half the people sickened in B.C. as part of a salmonella outbreak linked to Malichita and Rudy brand cantaloupes are from the Island Health region, according to the B.C. Centre for Disease Control.
Seven of the 15 people who have become ill related to the outbreak live on Vancouver Island.
The latest report from Health Canada shows the number of people in Canada who have fallen ill from the outbreak had doubled to 129 by Thursday from 63 at the end of November.
The bulk of the cases — 91 — are in Quebec, with 17 in Ontario and two cases each in Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland and Labrador.
Five people in Canada have died as a result of the outbreak — up from just one at the end of November. Hospitalizations have more than doubled to 44 from 17 across the affected provinces.
In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration said that as of Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control was reporting 230 cases from 38 states, including 96 hospitalizations and three deaths.
Those who became ill in B.C. range from an infant to an 85-year-old, with the majority of those affected age five to 65, according to Health Canada. The very young and old with weakened immune systems are more likely to suffer severe illness from salmonella.
The B.C. CDC issued food-recall warnings three times in November for Malichita cantaloupes sold between Oct. 11 and Nov. 14.
On Nov. 24, it updated its warning to include Rudy-brand cantaloupes sold starting Oct. 10.
Additional secondary recalls have been issued for products that were made using recalled cantaloupes and for produce items that were processed alongside recalled cantaloupes, says Health Canada. That includes fruits such as honeydew, pineapple, watermelon and various fruit trays.
The cantaloupes were distributed across the country.
Salmonella infection causes symptoms including diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps that develop six to 72 hours after consumption and usually last four to seven days, according to the B.C. CDC.
Most people do not need antibiotics and recover without treatment, according to the centre.
The centre is advising people to discard and not to consume any packaged or individually labelled Malichita cantaloupes or cantaloupes of an unknown origin.
