Pima County death tied to tainted cucumbers

• Pima County patient is the third person who died from salmonella outbreak
• The salmonella outbreak from cucumbers grown in Mexico has infected 418 people in 31 states.

A woman in Pima County with health conditions was the first Arizonan to die as part of a 31-state salmonella outbreak tied to tainted cucumbers grown in Mexico and distributed by a California company, officials said.

The Pima County Health Department said Friday the elderly woman had serious underlying health conditions and died while being treated for her illness at a Pima County hospital. Officials did not release any other information about the woman, including her age or when she became sickened with salmonella.

On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that the salmonella outbreak had infected 418 people in 31 states. The Pima County patient is the third person who died, following earlier deaths reported in California and Texas. Slightly more than half the cases involved children.

The CDC reports that imported cucumbers grown in Mexico and distributed by San Diego-based Andrew and Williamson are the likely source of the infections in this outbreak.

On Sept. 4, San Diego-based Andrew and Williamson recalled all cucumbers under its Limited Edition label sold between Aug. 1 and Sept. 3 due to concerns about contamination. The cucumbers came from Rancho Don Juanito farm in Mexico.

On Sept. 11, Custom Produce Sales, of Parlier, Calif., recalled cucumbers sold under the Fat Boy label, as well as unlabeled cucumbers packed in black reusable containers and sold in Nevada beginning Aug. 1. Custom Produce Sales' recalled cucumbers that came from Andrew and Williamson, according to the CDC.

Andrew and Williamson said in a statement on its website that it is evaluating its cucumber-farming and -packing operations to find a potential cause. The company also said it's scrubbing and cleaning its facility.

No cucumbers grown in Arizona or the United States have been linked to the outbreak.

The CDC and Arizona health officials have identified 72 Arizona cases of salmonella as of Tuesday, trailing only California, which has 89 cases.

A Seattle-based law firm, Marler Clark, has filed eight lawsuits against Andrew and Williamson, including three cases on behalf of Maricopa County residents.