At least 200 people got infected by a norovirus after eating in a doughnut shop located in Toledo, Ohio. The store remained closed on Thursday as county health inspectors proceeded with the investigation.
The store in the Toledo suburb of Maumee closed after knowing 214 people got infected and felt sick due to their food. Health officials came to the conclusion that all of those infected people were linked to each other: they ate at the same doughnut store on Conant Street, called Mama C’s Donuts & Coffee.
Now the establishment is being deeply investigated to find the cause of the virus. The store was very cooperative letting the health workers clean the kitchen and sanitize the entire facility, according to a spokesman for the health department. Now they are working to determinate if the virus came from costumers, employees, or something else.
The doughnut shop closed due 214 people infected
According to a report by The (Toledo) Blade newspaper and television news station in the area, people who ate the food between the days of Aug. 4 and Aug. 7 became ill with the well-known norovirus symptoms.
The food business now shows a sign on the door saying they closed because they ran out of doughnuts since Wednesday, according to The Blade
The health officials tested individuals from the restaurant according to WTOL-TV Channel 11, a CBS affiliate news station in the city. It reported at least three samples were positive for norovirus. Likewise, it’s believed the doughnut shop would stay closed a few more days, according to the Health Commissioner Eric Zgodvnski.
“I was texted Sunday morning about 2 a.m. or so that there was something going on. Monday morning, we came in and started the investigation and found out that, at this point in time, the investigation is looking to Mama C’s out in Maumee relative to a norovirus outbreak,” Zgodinski told WTOL-TV.
What are the symptoms of the norovirus and what to do to prevent it
Mama C’s is under the jurisdiction of the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department, but they did not publish any information after knowing the news the day before. The department only posted an image on Thursday on its Facebook to protect people from the norovirus. They explained what the symptoms are, and which precautions you should take if you have them.
“Norovirus spreads easily and can cause diarrhea and vomiting. The best way to stop norovirus is proper hand washing, cleaning surfaces, and staying home when sick,” was the only info provided along the graphic and posted on Facebook by the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department.
Other symptoms of the norovirus are nausea, abdominal pain or camps, watery or loose diarrhea, malaise, low-grade fever, and muscle pain.
The symptoms usually appear within the 24 or 48 hours after contact with the virus. According to the health department, the sickness can last around two or three days. But the infected individual can spread the virus even after the first days of symptoms, as it can stay inside the body up to two weeks. It can pass on through direct contact, like shaking hands, kisses, shared drinks, or just a normal-distance conversation.
Source: Food Safety News