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But Kent health official sees no new problems since Chipotle reopened
By Katie Byard
Beacon Journal staff writer
Published on Wednesday, Apr 23, 2008
The number of people who reported that they became sick after eating at the Chipotle Mexican Grill in Kent has grown to about 435.
That's up from the 180 reports received as of Saturday afternoon.
Kent Health Commissioner John Ferlito said Tuesday that the additional cases involve people who ate at the restaurant before Saturday.
''We're not seeing any problem in the last three days,'' Ferlito said.
The restaurant at 429 E. Main St. reopened Saturday, after a voluntary shutdown Friday. Workers replaced the food and sanitized equipment with a bleach solution.
Chris Arnold, a spokesman for Chipotle, said the company has established a claims process to reimburse the related medical expenses of those who became ill.
People who sought medical attention for their symptoms should call Chipotle Claims at 888-366-2150, Arnold said.
''Food safety is, and always has been, our highest priority,'' said Monty Moran, the company's president and chief operating officer.
Ferlito suspects the cause of the illness is a norovirus.
''I'm speculating that it was probably in the food because the people had eaten food
there,'' he said.
On Monday, officials sent stool and food samples to the Ohio Department of Health in an effort to determine the cause.
Ferlito said test results might be available this week. But, he said, norovirus can be hard to find in food.
The symptoms of norovirus typically include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.
''It's following the classic lines of the norovirus, by the timeline of the disease,'' with many of the callers reporting they felt better after roughly 24 to 48 hours, Ferlito said.
Over Thursday and Friday, more than two dozen people sought treatment at Robinson Memorial Hospital in Ravenna. Three of them stayed overnight because of severe symptoms.
Health officials last week urged anyone feeling sick after eating at the restaurant to call the Kent Health Department and seek medical attention.
Ferlito said roughly 200 people called Sunday and Monday and reported having norovirus symptoms after eating at the restaurant. He speculated that news reports over the weekend prompted many of the calls.
''People saw it in the paper, and on the news and said, 'Oh, I just thought I picked up a bug, but I ate at Chipotle and I had those symptoms.' ''
Outbreaks of norovirus gastroenteritis have been traced to restaurants, cruise ships, nursing homes and other places where a large number of people are served meals, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
''People working with food who are sick with norovirus gastroenteritis are a particular risk to others,'' the CDC says on its Web site.
Ferlito said there were no health violations found at the restaurant during an inspection Friday morning.
Arnold, the Chipotle spokesman, said Saturday that the restaurant has ''taken preventative steps that meet or exceed health department requirements, and will continue to assist'' health officials in their investigation.
Kent health officials can be reached at 330-678-8109.
Katie Byard can be reached at 330-996-3781 or kbyard@thebeaconjournal.com.
The number of people who reported that they became sick after eating at the Chipotle Mexican Grill in Kent has grown to about 435.
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