A recent outbreak of salmonella poisoning in Lowndes County in which 72 cases were investigated leaves us with two conclusions, one positive and one negative.

First, the good: The South Georgia Health District and other health officials performed admirably in determining from where the virus originated and isolating it. Investigators found that staff at a local restaurant were using a new meat slicer that tested positive for the salmonella outbreak. The food slicer was immediately removed from service after it was learned that a defect in the product was the culprit. Also, all food items that may have been in contact with the slicer were thrown away and additional food items were collected for testing.

Where we have a problem with the South Georgia Health District is in how tight-lipped the agency was in informing the public about the local health hazard. One official said that if you release information in the middle of the investigation, it may not be accurate.

While the agency may not have had a complete picture of what was happening during the early investigation, it was confirmed that there was a salmonella outbreak. Nineteen people were hospitalized, after all. While most people recover without treatment from salmonella, the elderly and infants can experience severe illness. For that reason, we think health officials should err on the side of giving out more information. Let the public at large realize there is a salmonella outbreak so it can make its own decisions and take precautions accordingly.

We applaud the South Georgia Health District for its work in protecting the public from what could have been a bigger outbreak. At the same time, we urge officials to, in the future, include Lowndes County citizens in the dissemination of information.