E. Coli Found In Odwalla Drink -- Test Detects Bacteria In Bottle Of Apple Juice At Tukwila Center

The strain of E. coli bacteria that has sickened dozens of people in Washington and other states has been found in an unopened bottle of Odwalla apple juice from the company's Tukwila distribution center, health officials said today.

It was the first laboratory confirmation that an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 disease in Washington and other Western states stems from contamination of Odwalla apple juice. The federal Food and Drug Administration found the bacteria today, health officials said.

"They found it in an unopened, 16-ounce bottle of apple juice," said Janice Boase, senior epidemiologist for the Seattle-King County Department of Public Health.

Eighteen confirmed cases of E. coli O157:H7 disease and another 10 probable cases have been reported in Washington state in the past two weeks. As many as 35 other confirmed or suspected cases have been reported in California and Colorado,

After confirming a case of E. coli illness that spread from a child who drank Odwalla juice to a child who had not, state health officials yesterday warned people to wash their hands to avoid transmitting the bacteria.

"Secondary spread is a concern in outbreaks like this," said Dr. John Kobayashi, senior epidemiologist with the state Health Department.

Two of the three Western Washington children who died in the 1993 outbreak of E. coli illness, traced to undercooked Jack In The Box hamburgers, were secondary cases, Kobayashi said.

Detailed information on the new case of secondary spread wasn't available. Kobayashi said the children are siblings and that the most likely cause of secondary spread of E. coli is oral or fecal transmission.

The contamination source of the latest outbreakis still unknown. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Information from the Associated Press and Reuters is included in this report. Odwalla set up an Internet web site yesterday, offering a description of how its juice products are made and of sanitation procedures. Links to the Odwalla Web site are on The Seattle Times Top Stories Web site at: http://www.seattletimes.com