E. coli outbreak cases rise from Calgary daycares

Alberta Health Services says 164 lab-confirmed cases are connected to an outbreak of E.coli stemming from a shared kitchen that 11 Calgary daycares use.

Cases have been confirmed in six of those facilities, with five others sharing the same kitchen.

There are currently 27 patients receiving care in hospital, with six so far being discharged.

19 people have been confirmed as having a severe illness called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS).

"They are stable and receiving the appropriate care in hospital," said AHS in a statement.

"Based on the epidemiology of the cases we've seen to date, it is highly likely the source of this outbreak is food that was distributed from the central kitchen. At this point, AHS has collected food samples for testing and awaiting results. At this time AHS has not been able to identify with certainty the exact food item that was the source."

A Calgary mom, who is currently on the wait list for one of the daycares in question, says she unsure what her plan is come Monday.

"Right now, I'm not really sure what I'm going to do," said Cathy Wang.

"It really depends on the waitlist for daycares as well, because right now a lot of the daycares have months up to a year, and I know a lot of parents out there simply don't have a choice because we can't wait for that long."

Wang says her kids have yet to attend one of the daycares listed in the outbreak, but she wants to help those families out by setting up a crowdfunding campaign.

She’s looking for gift cards for food or transportation, to help families stuck at the hospital.

"It's very hard for me to trust that they will take care of my kid when they failed so many already," Wang said.

"I feel like daycares are supposed to be a safe place."

Six Fueling Brains Academy locations in Calgary and five other sites will remain closed until the issue is resolved.

Some have the potential to reopen on Monday and Tuesday.