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© Agence France-PresseCucumbers from Spain are one of the sources responsible for an outbreak in Germany of E.Coli.
  • E.Coli strain has killed nine in Germany
  • 300 people hospitalised with the deadly bug
  • Warning not to eat cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes
A German in Britain has been diagnosed with a potentially lethal strain of E.coli, believed to originate in organic cucumbers.

The bacteria have killed nine people in Germany, and almost 300 people have been admitted to the hospital there. Cases have also been reported in Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands.

The outbreak is believed to have originated in organic cucumbers grown in Spain, although there also are suggestions the bacteria have been found in cucumbers grown in the Netherlands.

The UK Food Standards Agency has confirmed that the offending cucumbers have not been on sale at any outlets in the UK.

The advice now to people travelling to Germany is not to eat cucumbers, raw tomatoes or lettuce.

The British Health Protection Authority (HPA) confirmed that three German nationals currently in Britain have fallen ill and one is confirmed to have the infection behind the outbreak.

A spokeswoman for the HPA said the outbreak in Germany was "very, very serious" and although the bug was infectious, there had been no reports of secondary infection yet in the UK.

Dr. Dilys Morgan, head of the gastrointestinal, emerging and zoonotic infections department at the HPA, said, "The HPA is actively monitoring the situation very carefully and liaising with the authorities in Germany, the European Centre for Disease Control and the World Health Organization as to the cause of the outbreak. E.coli bacteria like these are responsible for the outbreak across Europe."

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© Agence France-PresseE.Coli found in vegetables has health authorities in Europe on high alert.

In Germany, concern was growing, with 60 new cases were reported in the last 24 hours.

A spokesman for the German consumer affairs minister Ilse Aigner said, "The European Union internal market has very strong safety rules and we expect all EU states to observe them."

He added that, for the moment, "one can only speculate about the causes" of the outbreak.

In Spain, a spokesman for the AESA food safety agency said investigations were also under way.

"The Andalusian authorities are investigating to find out where the contamination comes from and when it took place," he said.

"This type of bacteria can contaminate at the origin or during handling of the product."

There has been no report of contamination within Spain, AESA said.

Those worse hit by the infection can contract hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a condition with severe effects.

British microbiologist Ron Cutler told Sky News, "It contains some very nasty toxins which can go straight to your kidneys and cause kidney failure, and it's very difficult to treat.

"For those who are treated, around 90 per cent of treatments can be successful, but one in 10 of those people could have damaged kidneys in later life."