Abstract: In mid-March, 1998, Employee #1 was assigned to run wiring from the basement to the upper floors of a senior citizens' housing center under construction. Some time prior to this, it had been reported that coworkers had defecated in the basement. The general contractor had responded by cleaning out the basement, whereupon work had continued. Shortly after completing the wiring project, Employee #1 became violently ill and experienced severe vomiting and diarrhea for the next three to four days. He sought medical attention and the consensus, as expressed by a physician from the New Jersey Department of Occupational Medicine, was that his illness was the result of exposure to E. coli bacteria. Testing of residual water in the basement of the structure revealed trace amounts of E. coli. Employee #1 was not wearing gloves or other form of protective wear while working in the basement.