Pizza Ranch sued over E. coli outbreak

A Kansas man is suing Iowa-based Pizza Ranch after his daughter was hospitalized following an E. coli infection linked to eating at the restaurant.

Richard Simmons Jr., of Valley Center, Kan., filed a federal lawsuit in Kansas Thursday saying his 7-year-old daughter got sick after eating at an Emporia, Kan., Pizza Ranch Jan. 31.

A few days after the meal, the girl started to fell ill, developing stomach cramps and diarrhea, the lawsuit states. She was admitted to a Wichita hospital Feb. 12 and a stool sample tested positive for E. coli. While at the hospital, the girl developed Hemolytic Ureic Syndrome, a severe kidney disorder often caused by E. coli infection, the suit states.

She was treated and released Feb. 27.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed Wednesday 13 people in nine states were sickened in an E. coli outbreak linked to Pizza Ranch, based in Orange City. Eight people were hospitalized, including two children, one in Kansas and one in Nebraska, who developed kidney failure because of the bacterial infection detected Dec. 4 through Feb. 9, CDC Spokeswoman Brittany Behm said.

Most of the people who got sick had eaten desserts made with Skillet Dough, which officials believe was the cause of the infection.

The restaurant chain stopped using the dough and ordered all restaurants to clean products that may have touched the dough mix. Pizza Ranch officials said they have stopped working with the vendor that supplied the dough. Tests of dough products at several Pizza Ranch restaurants did not detect E. coli, health officials said.

The lawsuit alleges Pizza Ranch breached its duty to provide safe food and is asking a judge to award the family at least $75,000.

Pizza Ranch, founded in Hull in 1981, has more than 190 locations in Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Nebraska, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Wyoming and Colorado.