Authorities have identified Martin Galindo-Larious Jr., 37, as the first person to die following a botulism outbreak in Northern California linked to gas station nacho cheese. In addition to Galindo-Larious Jr., nine other victims are reportedly hospitalized, with one paralyzed, Fox News reported.

Galindo-Larious was taken off life support May 18 and died hours later after a botulism infection left him unable to breath on his own. The infection was traced back to liquid nacho cheese sold at Valley Oak Food and Fuel in Walnut Grove, near Sacramento, Fox News reported. The cheese was manufactured by Gehl Foods of Wisconsin. The product has been removed from the gas station, and investigators are looking into how the cheese became contaminated in the first place.

The victim is remembered as being a hard-working father who loved his family; he died surrounded by his wife and two children.

Read: What Causes Botulism? Public Concern After California Woman Hospitalized After Eating Nachos

Botulism is an illness caused by the botulinum toxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum (C. botulinum). The infection causes paralysis, which in some cases can be life threatening. For example, the paralysis usually starts in the face, but can spread to the limbs, and eventually to the respiratory muscles, Medical News Today reported.

The toxin affects your nerves, and individuals can get the infection either from food or through a wound opening. Prior to paralysis, victims may experience double vision, have facial weakness, a dry mouth and/or slurred speech. Although the infection is scary, it is also very rare, with fewer than 200 cases reported in the U.S. each year. The toxin is also hard to detect in food.

“That’s the scary thing about botulism — it’s odorless and tasteless,” Bill Marler, an attorney representing six of the victims, told KTVU. “The most likely thing is that it happened in some error at the assembly line at the cheese manufacturer.” Gehl Foods said in a statement that their foods are safe, and they are working with investigators to find the cause of the outbreak, Fox reported.

Lavinia Kelly, 33, is also a victim of the botulism outbreak, and has been paralyzed and hooked up to a respirator for weeks, The Sacramento Bee reported. Like Galindo-Larious, Kelly also ate the nacho cheese, and has been in the hospital’s intensive care unit ever since.

The condition can be treated with injections of antitoxins, and if the infection is a result of a wound infection, the skin around the wound must be surgically removed.

The most common culprits of foodborne botulism are home-canned vegetables, cured pork and ham, smoked fish, honey, corn, and syrup, Medical News Today reported. If the infection progresses too far, and causes paralysis of the respiratory system, it may be more difficult to treat. In addition, even in the event of a full recovery, fatigue and shortness of breath may remain for years after the initial infection. Antitoxins also cannot reverse any paralysis that has already occurred.

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