About 300 people in Stuttgart, Germany, have sought medical attention with symptoms of poisoning after attending a festival in the city.
According to the Stuttgarter Nachrichten, the Stuttgart health department has received increasing reports from festival attendees who contracted an unknown gastrointestinal virus after visiting one of the festival tents.
A Major Outbreak
"We discovered a large outbreak, having received data on the signs of more than 300 gastrointestinal diseases. They appeared after visiting the tent," said a representative of the city council.
Local authorities are still trying to identify which specific tent at the festival was linked to the outbreak. The symptoms reported by the affected individuals suggest a viral origin, and laboratory tests are currently being conducted on initial samples.
After receiving the first reports, the Department of Food and Health Control immediately sent officials to the site to inspect hygiene conditions and collect food samples. The priority for local authorities is to contain the outbreak and determine the source of the infection to prevent further spread.
Broader Health Concerns
The festival outbreak in Stuttgart comes amid other public health concerns in Europe.
In the Czech Republic, health authorities have warned of an outbreak of whooping cough, a bacterial infectious disease known for persistent coughing, reaching levels not seen since the 1960s. Three patients have died from whooping cough in the Czech Republic this year: a 62-year-old man, an 84-year-old woman, and a newborn, all of whom had other health issues.
Similarly, Croatia experienced its largest outbreak of whooping cough in 40 years last year.
Authorities in Stuttgart are focused on containing the gastrointestinal outbreak and identifying its source to prevent further cases.
