The Goshen Scout Reservation has been closed until further notice after more than a dozen scouts were sickened by E.Coli there, an official informed last night.

According to officials of the National Capital Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America, the local camp was closed after discovering that more scouts presented symptoms of the infection. Overall, 16 Boy Scouts and an adult leader are victims of the infection, two of the boys being in serious condition, published reports showed.

In line with the statement of Cheryle Rodriguez, acting director of the Virginia Department of Health, she wasn’t aware of the summer camp’s closure. Her office carried on investigating the situation, she said.

The Scouting organization said in a press release that starting today, “the source of the bacteria remains unconfirmed."

For the investigation, the council announced it would get in touch with Scouts scheduled for camp this week and the ones who were present there last week. If they present any symptoms of the infection, they should immediately seek medical treatment, asserted executive Alan Lambert in a statement posted on the council’s Web site.

E. coli is a bacterium that can trigger to humans becoming infected by eating tainted food, handling animals or swimming in contaminated water. It can cause severe food poisoning in people but not everyone exposed to it becomes ill, said Seth Levine, a state epidemiologist. However, individuals who do, usually undergo stomach cramps, watery bloody diarrhea, fever and chills. In serious cases, the infection can harm organs like kidneys.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, E. coli infects an estimated 73,000 people and kills 61 a year in the U.S.