Washington state health officials report investigating six Salmonella cases in five counties.

Image/stevepb via pixabay
Image/stevepb via pixabay

The six cases include residents of King (1), Snohomish (1), Thurston (1), Yakima (2) and Pierce (1) counties. All were infected with the same strain of Salmonella bacteria.

Five of the six people reported buying and eating English cucumbers from various Costco stores in Washington. The cucumbers linked to the illnesses were sold in three-packs of individually wrapped cucumbers.

The outbreak is a reminder of the importance of properly washing fruits and vegetables before eating them.

Health officials advise the public if they bought English cucumbers from Costco between Aug. 18 and Sept. 10 and still have them in your refrigerator–throw them away.

Salmonella can cause diarrhea, fever, chills, abdominal discomfort and vomiting. Serious bloodstream infections may also occur.