There were a lot of questions from Cape Cod's shellfish industry after state officials revealed Wednesday that they had traced five cases of gastrointestinal illness back to vibrio bacteria in oysters eaten here last summer and fall.
John Jacob, spokesman for the state Department of Public Health, confirmed Friday that there were two cases from Dennis and three from Wellfleet. A DPH spokesman had said Wednesday that the three Wellfleet cases were traced back to the OysterFest, which serves up to 150,000 raw oysters over a two-day span in October.
But some fishermen, suppliers and restaurant owners have asked for proof, wanting to see the case histories compiled by DPH and local health departments. Others wondered how they could satisfy new rules requiring refrigeration and other methods to keep newly harvested oysters cool on the hot tidal flats and en route to market.
What they don't question is the need to keep the public safe and their commitment to taking measures to do so.
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