Lynne Terry, the E. coli Lady of The Oregonian, today wrote that Oregon scientists confirmed today that deer droppings from Jaquith Strawberry Farm contained the same strain of E. coli that sickened people in Multnomah, Washington Clackamas, Yamhill and Clatsop counties.

Lab testing confirmed deer as the source of the outbreak,” said William Keene, senior epidemiologist at Oregon Public Health.

Scientists picked up environmental samples from fields at Jaquith Strawberry Farm in rural Washington County and 10-tested positive for E. coli O157:H7. Of those, six matched the strain that sickened 15 people in Oregon, including one woman who died. The other four were separate strains of E. coli O157:H7.

Keene said the outbreak strain turned up in samples from fields in three separate locations.