Health agency hunting E. coli from Oconee family's home

WATKINSVILLE - The Northeast Health District is testing food and beverages from a Watkinsville family&#39;s home to locate the source of E. coli bacteria that infected two young boys and their grandmother. <br> <br> Two-year-old Breagan Craig suffered kidney failure, underwent three rounds of dialysis and had nine blood transfusions after contracting E. coli earlier this month. <br> <br> He was released from the Medical College of Georgia Hospital in Augusta, but has recovered only about 25 percent of his kidney function. His mother, Cheryll Craig, said doctors don&#39;t know if he&#39;ll regain any additional kidney function. <br> <br> She said, ``I was so scared. I was so afraid. It took eleven years to have him. We really worked to have children. And then you&#39;re faced with losing him.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Breagan&#39;s one-year-old brother and Cheryll Craig&#39;s mother, 61-year-old Judy Ford also became ill with E. coli. <br> <br> The bacteria has been identified as Escheria coli O157:H7, a potentially lethal form of E. coli, but officials are waiting for tests from the family&#39;s home, according to Lynn Beckman, chief epidemiologist for the Northeast Health District in Athens. <br> <br> The exact source may never be determined. <br> <br> The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says E. coli O157 infects about 73,000 people and kills 61 people each year. <br> <br> The bacteria occurs naturally in the intestines of cows and generally is transmitted when people eat undercooked ground beef.