A suspected food poisoning incident at a Hi-Lai Harbour restaurant at Kaohsiung Arena was not caused by norovirus or rotavirus, but might have been caused by pathogenic bacteria, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday.
Testing for viral pathogens was negative for the two common causes of diarrhea, CDC Deputy Director-General Tseng Shu-hui (曾淑慧) said.
As of 9am on Monday, the number of people who had sought medical attention after dining at the upscale buffet restaurant in Zuoying District (左營) on Friday and Saturday last week had increased to 52 since Saturday, when 11 diners were first reported to have fallen ill, the Kaohsiung Health Department said in a statement.
Photo: CNA
All of the 52 people reported diarrhea and abdominal pain, while a handful also reported nausea and vomiting, the department said.
It had previously collected specimens from seven people who fell ill after eating at the branch and from 48 employees who handle food at the restaurant, as well as food samples.
Testing on the customers and employees came back negative for viral pathogens, meaning it is likely that pathogenic bacteria were involved, Tseng said.
Common bacteria that cause foodborne illness include Vibrio parahaemolyticus, salmonella, enteropathogenic Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Vibrio cholerae and Clostridium botulinum, she said, adding that testing was being conducted to clarify the situation.
Earlier on Monday, the owner of the Hi-Lai Harbour branch said that it was working to improve food safety and would take full responsibility if it is found to be linked to the suspected food poisoning.
Hi-Lai Foods Co, the restaurant’s owner, in a statement on Monday apologized to those who were ill after dining at the restaurant, saying the cause of the incident was under investigation, and that it would conduct a post-incident review and devise operational improvement measures.
Hi-Lai Foods said that it would shoulder all responsibility based on the investigation results and initiate insurance claim applications, adding that its affiliated restaurants are all covered by product and public liability policies.
Pending the release of the test results, the Kaohsiung restaurant voluntarily closed on Saturday and Sunday to undergo extensive cleaning.
It remained closed through yesterday to conduct staff training on food sanitation standards to ensure improvements are made, the company said.
The department said that the restaurant should implement improvement plans based on inspection and investigation results, while bolstering internal controls and retraining staff to ensure food safety before the end of the suspension period yesterday.
City health officials are to conduct a follow-up inspection this week and if sanitation issues persist, the restaurant could face a fine of NT$60,000 to NT$200 million (US$1,843.77 to US$6.15 million), the department said, citing the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (食品安全衛生管理法).
Additional reporting by Lee I-chia
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