..Bacterial outbreak to blame.The following article By KEVIN MARTIN was originally printed in the Edmonton Sun, it is re-printed here for your convenience.”CALGARY – Children as young as a year old may have unknowingly been victims of painful lesions caused by a West Edmonton Mall bacterial outbreak, a Calgary lawyer said yesterday.Jaime Cuming, who has filed a class action lawsuit, said parents of kids who developed the sores four years ago may not link them to a visit to the mall.“It wasn’t something that arose the day after, or two days after,” Cuming told Sun Media, of the lengthy incubation period before the bloody lesions developed.“It’s possible the (child’s) physician wouldn’t have known where the exposure would’ve come from,” he said.Cuming has been instructed by the judge managing the lawsuit to seek publicity to determine how many people may have been infected.He expects to seek certification for his class action suit this fall, once he determines how many potential victims are out there.Cuming has filed a representative claim against West Edmonton Mall and its World Waterpark, after five-year-old Ethan Mintz developed lesions after visiting the site in early 2003.A Capital Health Region study of the outbreak found 28 confirmed cases and 57 suspected cases linked to bacteria found in the park’s “dolphin” wading pool.“The infections led to, in most of the children, open sores on their hands and feet, primarily their feet,” Cuming said.The mall has filed a statement of defence disputing responsibility for the outbreak.The lawsuit seeks general damages of $50,000 for each class member, although Cuming said if liability is proven, any payments will be dependent on the extent of each individual’s injuries.”This article is copyright Sun Media and the Edmonton Sun. The original article can be found here.
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