Officials from the Health Protection Agency in Leeds were alerted on the weekend of July 1 and 2, 2006, to four confirmed cases of the E-coli 0157 bug in the city.

Within a short space of time it had affected about 60 people, some of them infected through contact with the growing number of victims.

Health officials warned people not to eat food bought from Todd's in Armley, which supplied 18 local butchers, cafés and delicatessens, after finding poor hygiene during their inquiries.

Leeds Council environmental health officials said later that it was fortunate that no-one had died as a result of the outbreak.

Among those struck down was Neil Cobley, a 59-year-old welder who had been due to start chemotherapy for cancer in his neck and lungs.

Instead of that, he was taken to hospital on June 30 with suspected kidney failure after suffering acute diarrhoea and vomiting for 48 hours, days after eating ox tongue from Todd's.

His wife Hilary said: "He had been bleeding and had diarrhoea constantly. We thought at first that it was something to do with the cancer.

"When it got worse, I thought he was having kidney failure," she added.

Mr Cobley, who spent four days in hospital, was diagnosed with lung cancer and a rare form of neck cancer in March 2006.

Joanne Knowles, of Kirkstall, Leeds, discovered to her horror that the bug could easily be passed on. Her children Abbie and Lewis were two and four when they were struck down.

Her son had eaten a sandwich, which she believed may have been contaminated, and may then have passed on the bug to his sister a few days later.

Jackie Clarke became ill after eating a bean salad which she believes was contaminated by meat.

Miss Clarke, an office worker in Leeds, felt the first pains four days after the salad, on Sunday July 2, and did not start to feel better until Thursday July 6.

She described how the bug had left her feeling very ill for several days. She was supposed to be moving house, but could barely lift her things.

She said: "I couldn't unpack. I couldn't do anything. Every time I stood up I got the cramps. On the Tuesday, I went to the doctor's and they said it was probably gastro-enteritis but they took a sample to check."