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An avid hiker and skateboarder was left doubled over in pain and feeling like there were ‘knives in my stomach’ after eating a McDonald’s Quarter Pounder — as another 15 people are sickened in the outbreak.
Silas Mayes, 17, from Colorado, visited the fast food chain — one of his favorites — for lunch with his father in early October.
The burger both looked and tasted normal, but three days later he woke up in the night suffering from bloody diarrhea and cramps that were ‘the worst pain I have ever experienced,’ he told DailyMail.com.
Silas was rushed to the ER by his mother Lera Davidson, where doctors gave him pain medication and hydrating fluids.
He was discharged, but the next day kept getting worse — unable to keep down food or water — and was taken back to the hospital, where he received fentanyl and medications to manage his symptoms.
The Mayes family is attributing his illness to the E.coli outbreak at McDonald’s. And it comes as another 15 people were reported to have been sickened and five hospitalized due to the outbreak.
This takes the total to at least 90 people being infected overall, according to officials, while 27 people have been hospitalized and one has died. At least two have also been left battling kidney failure — including a 15-year-old girl and 88-year-old woman.
The CDC said today the chopped onions in the burgers were the source of the infection, adding now that these have been recalled, the risk to the public was ‘very low.’
Silas went to the McDonald’s for the Quarter Pounder with his father on October 7, while they were on a lunch break from their tiling job.
On October 10, he woke up his mother clutching his stomach saying that cramps were suddenly coming on in waves.
She rushed him to the hospital, where he received pain medication and was discharged.
But after his symptoms did not improve the next day, he returned for further treatment.
Speaking to DailyMail.com, Silas said: ‘It was basically the worst pain I have ever experienced, like knives in my stomach.
‘I would have these ongoing cramps every three minutes and it was just, like, this really sharp pain — it was unbearable.
‘I haven’t been able to pick up any of my hobbies again or anything because of how sick I’ve been.’
Tests later showed he had been infected with the same strain of E.coli as that behind the McDonald’s outbreak.
After he was discharged again, Ms Davidson said her son stayed at home laying in bed for three days.
She described him as ‘very weak’ after losing 10 pounds and being left feeling tired and fatigued all the time.
Describing his condition now — nearly three weeks after he first suffered symptoms — she said: ‘He is still not too great.
‘The major symptoms are gone, but the nausea and fatigue are still there. He is very weak.
‘He was avidly working out before, but now he has lost 10 pounds.
‘Of course, he has tried to pick up his skateboard again and he does try to do tricks on it — but he is just too weak now to perform any.’
Investigators at the CDC today confirmed the chopped yellow onions in the burgers were the likely source of the E.coli.
The Quarter Pounder was also withdrawn from a fifth of McDonald’s restaurants amid the outbreak last week, but it has now returned — although in 700 locations it is being served without the onions.
Burger King, Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut have all also stopped using onions as a ‘proactive’ measure amid the outbreak.
In its update today, the CDC said the most recent case of someone falling ill in the outbreak was October 16. The first illnesses were detected on September 27.
Ms Davidson added: ‘I don’t trust McDonald’s. We won’t be grabbing a McDonald’s burger or burger from anywhere anymore.
‘We won’t touch it because I saw how ill my son was, and still is, I don’t want anyone to get that ill. I prepare all the food at home now and I am double and triple washing everything that I touch to be safe.’
Silas is the latest patient to come forward to reveal his illness, after a 15-year-old girl also in Colorado and a 33-year-old mother in Nebraska also detailed their illnesses.
And a man in Colorado has filed a lawsuit against McDonald’s over the outbreak.
Dozens of victims are being represented by national food poisoning lawyer Ron Simon, who told DailyMail.com he is now working with 36 victims of the outbreak — including two who are battling kidney complications.
A spokesperson for McDonald’s did not return a DailyMail.com request for comment.
But in response to a previous case, they said that hearing the cases was ‘devastating’.
The spokesperson added: ‘We know that people and families have been significantly impacted, and the well-being of our customers is deeply important to us.’
The Mayes family said they had not heard from McDonald’s since their son fell ill.
They are now considering legal action against the fast food giant, which operates more than 14,300 restaurants nationwide.
After Silas tested positive for E.coli, the local health department interviewed him and his mother about his illness and the possible source of infection.
This led to his case being linked to the current outbreak at McDonald’s.
Silas is the second oldest of four children and lives at home with his family and five dogs. He also has a girlfriend, who he said was very supportive throughout the sickness.
