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46 Cleveland County fairgoers now sickened from E. coli

The number of people infected with E. coli after contracting the bacteria from a North Carolina county fair has jumped to 46, health officials said Tuesday.

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RALEIGH, N.C. — The number of people infected with E. coli after contracting the bacteria from a North Carolina county fair has jumped to 46, health officials said Tuesday.

A spokeswoman for the state Department of Health and Human Services said that, as of Tuesday afternoon, 29 children, including one who died, and 17 adults who attended the Cleveland County Fair have gotten sick.

Ten people have been or are currently in the hospital.

Twenty-two of the cases have been reported in Cleveland County, nine, including the death, in Gaston County, 10 in Lincoln County and one each in Catawba, Mecklenburg and Union counties in North Carolina and York and Cherokee counties in South Carolina.

The nine-day fair ended Oct. 7. Health officials say symptoms of E. coli infection could come up to 10 days after exposure and can include diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea and vomiting.

Officials have not identified the specific source of the bacteria.

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