Investigation continues over gastro outbreak at Tangalooma Island Resort
An investigation into an outbreak of gastroenteritis that affected more than 50 people at Tangalooma Island Resort on Moreton Island has found E coli bacteria in the drinking water.
Guests and staff began experiencing vomiting and diarrhoea last week, prompting an immediate investigation.
Guests at the resort are being provided with free bottled water while more tests are being conducted on the underground aquifer, with management working closely with Brisbane City Council and Queensland Health to find out how the contamination occurred.
“We’re just testing to see where the source of it is, how did it get into the water supply because it’s never happened before and that’s what’s got us a little bit stumped here,” resort director David James told ABC radio.
“All we can wait for is the test results to come through and hopefully today or tomorrow we get some better news and it’s cleared up,” he said.
Dr Kari Jarvinen from the Metro South Public Health Unit advised anyone who has recently visited the resort to seek medical advice if they display symptoms of gastroenteritis.
A spokeswoman for Tangalooma Island Resort said management had begun implementing its protocols to keep guests and staff safe, including a chlorination treatment on the water supply and sanitisation regimes in public areas and across guest facilities.
Sheridan Randall, 6th November 2019
