KILLED BY A MILKSHAKE EXCLUSIVE: Grandfather who died after eating a bacteria-laden fast food restaurant in Washington is pictured for the first time

A Washington grandfather was one of three people who died of a deadly bacterial infection after drinking a fast food milkshake.

Charles Roberson, of Yelm, Tacoma, died on June 20 at the age of 73 from listeria — an infection traced to an ice machine at the Frugals burger joint that had not been properly cleaned.

He drank the potion between March and April and experienced numbness and pain in his neck and arms about a month later.

His wife, Linda Roberson, filed a wrongful death claim Monday in Pierce County Superior Court alleging that Frugals was negligent in manufacturing, distributing and selling the shakes.

Bill Marler, a food safety attorney who represents the Roberson family, told me KOMO news“This is a really sad situation. You know, a man and a woman have been married for 45 years. He eats a Frugal shake and gets sick.

“You can’t undo a death, but what you can do is make everything transparent so we can learn from this unfortunate incident and hopefully convince people to clean their equipment better.”

The machines are used to make the chain’s milkshakes, but had not been properly cleaned.

In June, Mr. Roberson was admitted to Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia with numbness and pain in his neck and arms.

He had surgery within days for possible neurological problems and was discharged to a rehabilitation center in Tacoma.

Mr Marler believes Mr Roberson’s symptoms were related to his listeria infection. The Seattle Times reported.

Mr. Roberson’s condition worsened and he died a few weeks later at St Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma.

His spinal fluid was sent to a lab for genetic fingerprinting on bacterial samples, which showed Mr Roberson was positive for listeria.

Listeria is an infection normally caused by eating food contaminated with the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes. Most people who eat foods contaminated with Listeria will not become seriously ill. But in some cases it can cause confusion and seizures, miscarriage in pregnant women and even death.

The restaurant stopped using its ice machines on Aug. 8, but Listeria can make people sick for up to 70 days.

Officials used genetic testing of bacteria in the milkshakes to show that the Listeria strain is the same one that hospitalized between six people. February 27 and July 22.

In all six cases, the immune system was weakened, making them less able to fight the disease. Three of them died, including Mr. Roberson.

Water accumulation and contamination can occur in areas within food processing equipment, which can lead to colonization of listeria bacteria.

If the equipment is not thoroughly cleaned, the bacteria will grow and some of it may end up in the food.

Mr Maher told DailyMail.com that more cases are ‘likely to come’ due to listeria’s up to 70-day incubation period.

Listeria is an infection normally caused by eating food contaminated with the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes.

Most people who eat foods contaminated with Listeria will not become seriously ill. But in some cases it can cause confusion and seizures and even lead to death.

People who are pregnant, 65 or older, and those with weakened immune systems are most at risk.

Officials say vulnerable people should call their health care provider if they’ve had a Frugals’ Tacoma milkshake between May 29 and August 7, 2023 and have listeria symptoms.

In a statement posted on Facebook, Frugals said, “We are heartbroken and deeply regret the damage our actions could have caused.”

It announced that it had stopped all milkshake sales at all of its locations, that the machines in other stores would be tested for Listeria, and that the contaminated machines would be decontaminated and retested.

Many foods can contain listeria, but it’s most commonly found in unpasteurized milk, soft cheeses, and ready-to-eat foods, such as prepackaged sandwiches.

Listeria is widely distributed in the environment and can be found in raw food and soil and in the faeces of many mammals, birds and fish.

Mild symptoms of diarrhea and vomiting typically begin within 24 hours of eating contaminated food and typically last one to three days.

However, if the infection spreads beyond the intestines, it becomes an invasive disease, with symptoms appearing within two weeks of eating food contaminated with listeria.

The infection is treated with antibiotics.

According to the CDC, about 1,600 Americans get listeria each year and about 260 die.

An invasive disease in pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature birth, or a life-threatening infection of the newborn, and nearly 1 in 20 non-pregnant people with invasive listeria die.

Nearly one in 20 non-pregnant people with invasive listeria dies.

You can avoid listeria by wash your hands regularly with soap and water, washing fruits and vegetables before eating them, spreparing ready-to-eat foods as recommended by the manufacturer, and to ensure all the hot food is steaming hot from start to finish.