The Journal News, the  Gannett  newspaper the Lower Hudson Valley including  Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties in New York, today (4/17/08) is reporting on a Shigella outbreak involving local Jewish schools and day care centers.  Here’s what Jane Lemer writes: 

A total of 67 cases of shigellosis have been reported so far this year, Rockland Commissioner of Health Dr. Joan Facelle said today. No cases of the infectious disease were reported during the same period last year.

A small number of cases started in January, with the majority of the infections occuring in the past three or four weeks, she said.

"We’re been out in the community, talking to the schools, to the rabbis, the families," she said. "We’re using a multi-pronged approach to get the information out there."

Most of the people who have the diseases live or attend school in the Monsey area, she said.

Check out the rest of the story here.