109

That is how many people have been diagnosed with Fusarium keratitis, a rare infection of the eye.  And the Center for Disease Control has only talked with 30 of those 109.  But that is all it has taken for Sears, Wal-Mart and Walgreens to pull Bausch & Lomb's ReNu with MoistureLoc contact lens cleaner off all their shelves.

It is a most frustrating time for the company.  It is a classic case of how a crisis situation can be triggered by a small pebble that rolls down the mountain and turns into a landslide.  Retailers are running the other way as are shareholders and stock analysts.  While the stock ticked up today after losing 21 percent this week, several analysts are still making negative comments.  And now talk of a lawsuit has surfaced.

The company has maintained there is no direct link between their product and the infection, but the situation began because the 109 all had one thing in common:  they all apparently used the ReNu product.  Bausch & Lomb is working hard to communicate with their customers.  The problem right now is they have to wait on a third party to ultimately determine their fate.  In the meantime, it is a bit like twisting in the wind.

Is your company ready for its crisis?